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SunPower Inc.

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FY2018 Annual Report · SunPower Inc.
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Corporate Headquarters

SunPower Corporation

77 Rio Robles 

San Jose, California 95134

408.240.5500

sunpower.com

©2019 SunPower Corporation. All Rights Reserved. SUNPOWER, the SUNPOWER logo, and all other 

trademarks cited herein are the property of SunPower Corporation in the U.S. and other countries as well.

Annual Report

2018

Changing the Way Our World is Powered

Finding the right solar doesn’t have to be complicated. For more 

than 30 years, SunPower has helped homeowners and businesses 

across the globe reduce their monthly electricity bills with the 

most efficient, powerful and reliable panels available, all backed 

by our industry-leading 25-year warranty. It’s solar made simple.

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, SunPower has a team of about 

6,600 dedicated, customer-focused employees in Africa, Asia,  

Australia, Europe, North and South America. For more information 

about how SunPower is changing the way our world is powered, 

visit www.sunpower.com.

Executive Officers

Thomas H. Werner

President, Chief Executive Officer 

and Chairman of the Board

Manavendra Sial

Executive Vice President 

and Chief Financial Officer

Kenneth Mahaffey

Executive Vice President 

and General Counsel

Douglas J. Richards

Executive Vice President, 

Administration

Jeffrey Waters

Chief Executive Officer, 

SunPower Technologies

Vichheka Heang

Corporate Controller 

and Principal Accounting Officer

Board of Directors

Thomas H. Werner

Chairman of the Board

François Badoual

Director

Antoine Larenaudie

Director

Helle Kristoffersen

Director

Catherine Lesjak

Director

Thomas R. McDaniel

Director

Director

Ladislas Paszkiewicz

Julien Pouget

Director

Patrick Wood III

Director

April 5, 2019 

Dear Shareholder: 

During 2018, SunPower made pivotal changes and investments that helped to set the course for our future – 
one that has already begun. We transformed from a highly diversified and capital-intensive company to a 
profitable, growing business focused on innovation and the distributed generation (DG) market.   

SunPower Simplifies and Focuses  
We needed to get back to basics. Key for the company last year was to simplify our business, set the course for 
sustainable profitability and de-leverage our balance sheet. Our financial statements can now easily be read 
and valued. We worked through the difficult task of reducing our operations expenses by almost 30 percent, 
lowering the threshold for long-term profitability.  

To de-leverage the balance sheet and fund investments in innovation, we sold assets that were no longer 
strategic or core to the future success of the company. This included selling our power plant development 
business to Clearway Energy Group, our stake in a joint venture Yieldco with First Solar to Capital Dynamics, 
and our microinverter business to Enphase Energy. We also created SunStrong Capital, a joint venture with 
Hannon Armstrong. This took existing SunPower-developed assets and provided a vehicle for acquisition of 
future projects to improve our cost of capital and remove debt from our balance sheet. 

One cost of doing business that we couldn’t completely avoid were solar tariffs. Like the rest of the solar sector, 
SunPower felt the effects of the Trump Administration’s solar tariffs, announced in January 2018. It cost us a 
significant amount of roughly $46 million.  We made a compelling case to the U.S. government for a technology 
exclusion, and after several quarters, SunPower’s technology was one of a very few excluded, allowing us to 
further invest in American innovation. We should see the benefits of this during 2019. 

As the solar industry has grown and matured, we made the strategic decision to manage our company as two 
separate business units: SunPower Technologies (SPT) for manufacturing and global DG sales, and SunPower 
Energy Services (SPES) for North America residential and commercial. Each business has unique characteristics 
and can be managed more effectively as stand-alone businesses. We expect this to result in faster decision-
making, tailored partnerships and lower capital intensity.   

SunPower Technologies - SPT 
Through SPT, we’ve introduced our most innovative module yet, A-Series, and are currently selling it through 
SPES in North America.  

Our A-Series panel, built from our high-performing yet lower-cost Next Generation Technology (NGT), was 
developed in the Silicon Valley Research Facility at our headquarters. The 400- and 415-watt modules feature 
our fifth-generation Maxeon solar cells, which are an impressive 65 percent larger than previous generations, 
therefore helping to generate much more power while lowering costs. 

We also launched a 400-watt home solar panel, called Maxeon 3, in Europe and Australia, where we see 
continued growth and market share.  

We’re especially proud that we introduced the world’s first 400-watt residential solar panels as most in the 
industry are just crossing the 300-watt threshold for home solar. That’s solar innovation – which is the heart 
of SunPower. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
To complete our newest product offerings, we have our high-quality 19-percent efficient Performance Series 
(P-Series) modules. These modules are still considered market leaders in power ratings and have lower up-
front costs - a key attribute needed to serve the international power plant market.  Leveraging a unique cell 
interconnect technology, we see strong demand for our cost-effective P-Series, which are currently the most 
deployed shingled cell solar panels in the world. 

For the second year running, DNV GL – a global independent energy expert and certification body –  named 
the P-Series solar panel a top performer in all five DNV GL tests. Reliability through thermal cycling, damp 
heat, humidity-freeze, dynamic mechanical load and potential induced degradation were all measured. 

Last April, we made a commitment to invest in American manufacturing. Delivering on our commitment, 
SunPower acquired the assets of SolarWorld Americas in Hillsboro, Ore., in October. Months later, following 
equipment moves from our Mexico factory, we were delivering P-Series solar panels assembled in America to 
commercial customers across the country.  

We also produce P-Series in a joint venture in China serving international markets.  

SPT has an international sales force and has sold both Maxeon and P-Series modules in more than 100 
different countries. 

SunPower Energy Services - SPES 
We formed SPES to focus on selling complete solar energy solutions to America and Canada. The future of solar 
energy is high-performance solar systems paired with storage and software to deliver reliable, clean and cost-
effective energy to distributed generation customers. SPES is comprised of commercial and residential market 
segments. 

North America Commercial 
Our commercial business is focused on being the leading distributed energy company in North America by 
concentrating on the integration of high-performance solar systems with storage and software. We have 
introduced Helix Storage with proprietary algorithms to help maximize the value of solar energy for our 
customers.   

With market-leading products, we’ve built a commercial franchise that led us to become the number one 
commercial solar provider in the U.S. with the largest installed base, according to Wood Mackenzie. We have an 
unmatched customer base of Fortune 500 companies – where eight out of 10 corporate buyers are SunPower 
customers – in multiple states, including Macy’s, Target, Toyota and Walmart. More than 55 percent are repeat 
customers.  

With this market position, we are able to offer our customers value service solar systems that optimize their 
solar energy.  These services include demand charge savings, monitoring, data analytics and optimization, 
energy management and wholesale grid services. We’re already seeing a storage attach rate of about 40 
percent and we have deployed 9 megawatt hours at more than 20 sites. 

North America Residential 
SunPower has been an innovator in the American residential solar market. In 2005, we created an independent 
dealer channel. We’re a leader in North American residential sales and as a residential solar panel supplier, 
seeing 15 percent growth and 278 megawatts installed in 2018. To date, SunPower solar systems have been 
installed on more than 236,000 U.S. homes.   

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
We also have a commanding position in the new homes business, being the choice of 18 out of 20 leading 
California homebuilders and seeing 65 percent year-over-year growth in 2018. We look forward to working 
closely with our home builders to deliver on the California new homes solar mandate, which requires that all 
new homes incorporate solar power beginning in 2020. And we can see other states taking a similar policy 
approach in the future. 

In addition to our differentiated products and sales channels, SunPower has invested heavily in digital to make 
the solar buying experience seamless. Through our advanced web application, it’s easy for our dealers to 
design, price and adjust solar solutions in real time.  

We will be bringing our Helix Storage and services technology to the residential market through an Equinox 
storage solution in 2019. We expect this will be a core part of our business in 2020 and beyond. 

Our Future is Bright 
SunPower is well-positioned for the future, with two focused business units working to deliver innovative solar 
solutions with profitable growth. I am particularly proud of the role our about 6,600 employees around the 
globe played throughout our transformative 2018 – and for their help advancing the adoption of solar. We’re 
still at the beginning of a worldwide transition to clean, reliable and cost-effective energy.  SunPower will be a 
leader in this transition and our best years are yet to come. 

Sincerely,  

Thomas H. Werner 
Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board 
SunPower Corporation 

 
 
 
 
 
 
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 30, 2018
OR
□ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from

to

Commission file number 001-34166

SunPower Corporation
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

Delaware
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation or Organization)
77 Rio Robles, San Jose, California

(Address of Principal Executive Offices and Zip Code)

94-3008969
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)
95134
(Zip Code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

(408) 240-5500
(Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code)

Title of each class
Common Stock $0.001 par value
Preferred Stock Purchase Rights

Name of each exchange on which registered
Nasdaq Global Select Market
Nasdaq Global Select Market

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☒ No □
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes □ No ☒
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Sections 13 or 15(d) of the Securities

Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and
(2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No □

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to

Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required
to submit such files). Yes ☒ No □

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K (§229.405 of this chapter) is not contained
herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in
Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting

company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of ‘‘large accelerated filer,’’ ‘‘accelerated filer,’’ and ‘‘smaller reporting company,’’
and ‘‘emerging growth company’’ in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):
Large accelerated filer ☒
Emerging growth company □

Smaller reporting company □

Non-accelerated filer □

Accelerated filer □

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying

with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. □

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes □ No ☒
The aggregate market value of the voting stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant on June 29, 2018 (the last business day of the
registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter) was $469 million. Such aggregate market value was computed by reference to the
closing price of the common stock as reported on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on June 29, 2018. For purposes of determining this amount
only, the registrant has defined affiliates as including Total Solar International SAS, formerly known as Total Energies Nouvelles Activités USA
and Total Gas & Power USA, SAS and the executive officers and directors of the registrant on June 29, 2018.

The total number of outstanding shares of the registrant’s common stock as of February 8, 2019 was 141,383,535.

Parts of the registrant’s definitive proxy statement for the registrant’s 2019 annual meeting of stockholders are incorporated by reference in

Items 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 of Part III of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Part I.

Part II.

Item 1. Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 1A. Risk Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 2. Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 3. Legal Proceedings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases
of Equity Securities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 6. Selected Consolidated Financial Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations. .
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosure About Market Risk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure. .
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 9B. Other Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Part III.

Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 11. Executive Compensation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder
Matters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence . . . . . . . . . . . .
Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Part IV.

Item 15. Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Signatures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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INTRODUCTORY NOTES

Trademarks

The following terms, among others, are our trademarks and may be used in this report: SunPower®,
Maxeon®, Oasis®, OasisGEO™, EnergyLink™, InvisiMount®, Tenesol®, Greenbotics®, Customer Cost of
Energy™ (″CCOE™″), SunPower Spectrum™, Helix™, Equinox™, Signature™, SolarBridge®, and The Power
of One™. Other trademarks appearing in this report are the property of their respective owners.

Unit of Power

When referring to our solar power systems, our facilities’ manufacturing capacity, and total sales, the unit of
electricity in watts for kilowatts (‘‘KW‘‘), megawatts (‘‘MW’’), and gigawatts (‘‘GW’’) is direct current (‘‘DC’’),
unless otherwise noted as alternating current (‘‘AC’’).

Levelized Cost of Energy (‘‘LCOE’’)

LCOE is an evaluation of the life-cycle energy cost and life-cycle energy production of an energy producing
system. It allows alternative technologies to be compared to different scales of operation, investment or operating
time periods. It captures capital costs and ongoing system-related costs, along with the amount of electricity
produced, and converts them into a common metric. Key drivers for LCOE reduction for photovoltaic products
include panel efficiency, capacity factors, reliable system performance, and the life of the system.

Customer Cost of Energy (‘‘CCOE’’)

Our customers are focused on reducing their overall cost of energy by intelligently integrating solar and

other distributed generation, energy efficiency, energy management, and energy storage systems with their
existing utility-provided energy. The CCOE measurement is an evaluation of a customer’s overall cost of energy,
taking into account the cost impact of each individual generation source (including the utility), energy storage
systems, and energy management systems. The CCOE measurement includes capital costs and ongoing operating
costs, along with the amount of electricity produced, stored, saved, or re-sold, and converts all of these variables
into a common metric. The CCOE metric allows a customer to compare different portfolios of generation
sources, energy storage, and energy management, and to tailor towards optimization.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private

Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are statements that do not represent
historical facts and the assumptions underlying such statements. We use words such as ‘‘anticipate,‘‘ ‘‘believe,’’
‘‘continue,’’ ‘‘could,’’ ‘‘estimate,’’ ‘‘expect,’’ ‘‘intend,’’ ‘‘may,’’ ‘‘plan,’’ ‘‘predict,’’ ‘‘project,’’ ‘‘potential,’’ ‘‘will,’’
‘‘would,’’ ‘‘should,’’ and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements
in this Annual Report on Form 10-K include, but are not limited to, our plans and expectations regarding future
financial results, expected operating results, business strategies, the sufficiency of our cash and our liquidity,
projected costs and cost reduction measures, development of new products and improvements to our existing
products, the impact of recently adopted accounting pronouncements, our manufacturing capacity and
manufacturing costs, the adequacy of our agreements with our suppliers, our ability to monetize our solar
projects, legislative actions and regulatory compliance, competitive positions, management’s plans and objectives
for future operations, our ability to obtain financing, our ability to comply with debt covenants or cure any
defaults, our ability to repay our obligations as they come due, our ability to continue as a going concern, our
ability to complete certain strategic transactions, trends in average selling prices, the success of our joint
ventures and acquisitions, expected capital expenditures, warranty matters, outcomes of litigation, our exposure
to foreign exchange, interest and credit risk, general business and economic conditions in our markets, industry
trends, the impact of changes in government incentives, expected restructuring charges, risks related to privacy
and data security, and the likelihood of any impairment of project assets, long-lived assets, and investments.
These forward-looking statements are based on information available to us as of the date of this Annual Report
on Form 10-K and current expectations, forecasts and assumptions and involve a number of risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by these forward-looking
statements. Such risks and uncertainties include a variety of factors, some of which are beyond our control.

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Please see ‘‘Item 1A. Risk Factors‘‘ herein and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission
(‘‘SEC’’) for additional information on risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ. These
forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date, and
we are under no obligation to, and expressly disclaim any responsibility to, update or alter our forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

The following information should be read in conjunction with the Consolidated Financial Statements and the

accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Our
fiscal year ends on the Sunday closest to the end of the applicable calendar year. All references to fiscal periods
apply to our fiscal quarter or year, which end on the Sunday closest to the calendar month end.

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ITEM 1. BUSINESS

Corporate History

PART I

SunPower has been a leader in the solar industry for over 30 years, originally incorporated in California in

1985 and reincorporated in Delaware during 2004 in connection with our initial public offering. In November
2011, our stockholders approved the reclassification of all outstanding former class A common stock and class B
common stock into a single class of common stock listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol
‘‘SPWR.‘‘ In fiscal 2011, we became a majority owned subsidiary of Total Solar International SAS, formerly
known as Total Gas & Power USA, SAS and Total Energies Nouvelles Activités USA (‘‘Total’’), a subsidiary of
Total S.A. (‘‘Total S.A.’’).

Company Overview

We are a leading global energy company dedicated to changing the way our world is powered. We deliver

complete solar solutions to residential, commercial, and power plant customers worldwide by offering:

•

•

•

•

cutting-edge solar module technology and solar power systems that are designed to generate electricity
over a system life typically exceeding 25 years;

integrated storage and software solutions that enable customers to effectively manage and optimize their
CCOE energy usage and expenses;

installation, construction, and ongoing maintenance and monitoring services; and

financing solutions that provide customers with a variety of options for purchasing or leasing high
efficiency solar products at competitive energy rates.

Our global reach is enhanced by Total S.A.’s long-standing presence in many countries where significant

solar installation goals are being established.

Recent Developments

Divestment of Microinverter Business

On August 9, 2018, we completed the sale of certain assets and intellectual property related to the
production of microinverters to Enphase Energy, Inc. (‘‘Enphase’’) in exchange for $25.0 million in cash and
7.5 million shares of Enphase common stock (the ‘‘Closing Shares’’), pursuant to an Asset Purchase Agreement
(the ‘‘Purchase Agreement’’) entered into on June 12, 2018. We received the Closing Shares and $15.0 million
cash payment upon closing, and received the final $10.0 million cash payment of the purchase price on
December 10, 2018.

For additional information, refer to ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to

Consolidated Financial Statements—Note 4. Business Combination and Divestitures.‘‘

Acquisition of SolarWorld Americas

On April 16, 2018, we entered into a Sale and Purchase Agreement (the ‘‘Sale and Purchase Agreement’’)
pursuant to which we agreed to purchase all of SolarWorld AG’s shares of stock in SolarWorld Americas Inc.
(‘‘SolarWorld Americas’’), and SolarWorld Industries Deutschland GmbH’s partnership interest in SolarWorld
Industries America LP. On August 21, 2018, we terminated the Sale and Purchase Agreement and entered into an
Asset Purchase Agreement with SolarWorld Americas, pursuant to which we agreed to purchase certain assets of
SolarWorld Americas in exchange for consideration of $26.0 million, subject to certain closing and post-closing
adjustments and other contingent payments. In connection with the termination of the Sale and Purchase
Agreement, we have recognized an expense of $20.0 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2018 in sales,
general and administrative expense. On October 1, 2018, we completed the acquisition of certain assets of
SolarWorld Americas, including its Hillsboro, Oregon facility and a significant portion of its manufacturing
workforce of more than 200 employees. The purchase consideration consisted of $26.0 million in cash and
additional contingent consideration of approximately $4.1 million.

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For additional information, refer to ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to

Consolidated Financial Statements—Note 4. Business Combination and Divestitures.‘‘

Formation of SunStrong Capital Holdings, LLC (‘‘SunStrong’’) Joint Venture and Transfer of Interest in
Residential Lease Portfolio

On November 5, 2018, we entered into a joint venture with HA SunStrong Capital LLC (‘‘HA SunStrong
Parent’’), an affiliate of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (‘‘Hannon Armstrong’’), to
acquire, operate, finance, and maintain a portfolio of residential rooftop or ground-mounted solar photovoltaic
electric generating systems (‘‘Solar Assets’’). Pursuant to the terms of the Purchase and Sale Agreement (the
‘‘PSA’’), we sold to HA SunStrong Parent, in exchange for consideration of $10.0 million, membership units
representing a 49.0% membership interest in SunStrong, formerly our wholly-owned subsidiary that historically
held and controlled the assets and liabilities comprising our residential lease business (the ‘‘Residential Lease
Portfolio’’). Following the closing of the PSA, we deconsolidated certain entities involved in our Residential
Lease Portfolio, as part of our previously announced decision to sell a portion of our interest in the Residential
Lease Portfolio, and retained membership units representing a 51% membership interest in SunStrong.

In connection with the joint venture, we entered into various agreements including an operating agreement

for SunStrong and a management agreement with respect to the Solar Assets, among others.

In connection with the closing of the PSA, SunStrong assumed all current and future debt service
obligations associated with the subordinated mezzanine loan of $110.5 million and long-term loans to finance
solar power systems and leases under our previous residential lease program.

On November 28, 2018, SunStrong closed the sale to external investors of its $400 million Solar Asset
Backed Notes, Series 2018-1 (‘‘Notes’’). The Notes were priced at a fixed interest rate of 5.68 percent per annum
and received a rating of A (sf) from KBRA and a Green Bond Assessment of GB1, the highest rating, by
Moody’s Investor Services. The anticipated repayment date is in November 2028, with a rated final maturity date
in November 2048. The Notes were issued by a special purpose entity, SunStrong 2018-1 Issuer, LLC, an
indirectly wholly-owned subsidiary of SunStrong. SunPower received a special distribution of approximately
$12.9 million from the proceeds generated by the sale of the Notes.

On November 5, 2018, SunStrong Capital Acquisition OF, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SunStrong

(‘‘Mezzanine Loan 2 Borrower’’), and SunStrong Capital Lender 2 LLC, a subsidiary of Hannon Armstrong,
entered into a loan agreement under which, Mezzanine Loan 2 Borrower may borrow a subordinated, mezzanine
loan of up to $32.0 million (the ‘‘Mezzanine Loan 2’’). The borrowing facilities provided by the Mezzanine Loan
2 have been determined in consideration of the residential lease assets for which we have either completed
construction or have the obligation to complete construction after November 5, 2018.

For additional information, refer to ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to
Consolidated Financial Statements—Note 4. Business Combination and Divestitures, Note 7. Leasing, Note 11.
Equity Investments, and Note 12. Debt and Credit Sources.‘‘

Segments Overview

In the fourth quarter of 2018, in connection with our efforts to improve operational focus and transparency,
drive overhead accountability into segment operating results, and increase strategic agility across the value chain
from our upstream business’ core strength in manufacturing and technology and our downstream business’ core
strength in offering complete solutions in residential and commercial markets, we reorganized our segment
reporting to an upstream and downstream structure. Previously, we operated under three end-customer segments
comprised of our (i) Residential Segment, (ii) Commercial Segment, and (iii) Power Plant Segment. Historically,
the Residential Segment referred to sales of solar energy solutions to residential end-customers, the Commercial
Segment referred to sales of energy solutions to commercial and public entity end-customers, and the Power
Plant Segment referred to our large-scale solar products and systems and component sales.

Under the new segmentation, the SunPower Energy Services Segment (‘‘SunPower Energy Services‘‘ or
‘‘Downstream’’) refers to sales of solar energy solutions in the North America region previously included in the
legacy Residential Segment and Commercial Segment (collectively previously referred to as ‘‘Distributed
Generation‘‘ or ‘‘DG’’) including direct sales of turn-key engineering, procurement and construction (‘‘EPC’’)
services, sales to our third-party dealer network, sales of energy under power purchase agreements (‘‘PPAs’’),

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storage solutions, cash sales and long-term leases directly to end customers, and sales to resellers. SunPower
Energy Services Segment also includes sales of our global Operations and Maintenance (‘‘O&M’’) services. The
SunPower Technologies Segment (‘‘SunPower Technologies‘‘ or ‘‘Upstream’’) refers to our technology
development, worldwide solar panel manufacturing operations, equipment supply to resellers, commercial and
residential end-customers outside of North America (‘‘International DG’’), and worldwide power plant project
development and project sales. Upon reorganization, some support functions and responsibilities have been
shifted to each segment, including financial planning and analysis, legal, treasury, tax and accounting support and
services, among others.

The reorganization provides our management with a comprehensive financial overview of our key
businesses. The application of this structure permits us to align our strategic business initiatives and corporate
goals in a manner that best focuses our businesses and support operations for success.

Our Chief Executive Officer, as the chief operating decision maker (‘‘CODM’’), reviews our business,
manages resource allocations and measures performance of our activities based on financial information for the
SunPower Energy Services Segment and SunPower Technologies Segment.

Reclassifications of prior period segment information have been made to conform to the current period

presentation. These changes do not affect our previously reported Consolidated Financial Statements.

SunPower Energy Services

North America Residential

Residential Systems

We offer a complete set of residential solutions that deliver value to homeowners and our dealer partners.
We have developed the capability to deliver AC panels with factory-integrated microinverters. The AC system
architecture, as compared with DC systems, facilitates direct panel installation, eliminating the need to mount or
assemble additional components on the roof or the side of a building, driving down system costs, improving
overall system reliability, and providing improved, cleaner design aesthetics. As part of our complete solution
approach, we offer our Equinox residential market product, a fully-integrated solar platform utilizing Maxeon
cells, AC microinverter, and EnergyLink monitoring hardware to combine solar power production and energy
management, allowing residential installers to quickly and easily complete their system installations and to ensure
always-on connectivity so homeowners can easily access their data anytime, anywhere. The Equinox platform is
also sold with our EnergyLink software analytics, which provides our customers with detailed information about
their energy consumption and production, enabling them to further reduce their energy costs.

Concurrent with the sale of certain assets and intellectual property related to the production of
microinverters to Enphase on August 9, 2018, we entered into a Master Supply Agreement (the ‘‘MSA’’)
pursuant to which, with certain exceptions, we have agreed to exclusively procure module-level power
electronics (‘‘MLPE’’) and alternating current (‘‘AC’’) cables from Enphase to meet all of our needs for MLPE
and AC cables for the manufacture and distribution of AC modules and discrete MLPE system solutions for the
U.S. residential market, including our current Equinox solution and any AC module-based successor products.
We have also agreed not to pair any third-party MLPE or AC cables with any of our modules for use in the
grid-tied U.S. residential market where an Enphase MLPE is qualified and certified for such module. The initial
term of the MSA is through December 31, 2023, and the MSA term will automatically be extended for
successive two-year periods unless either party provides written notice of non-renewal.

We offer the SunPower InvisiMount residential mounting system in our product portfolio. The InvisiMount
system is designed specifically for use with our panels and reduces installation time through pre-assembled parts
and integrated grounding. The InvisiMount system is well-suited for residential sloped roof applications and
provides design flexibility and enhanced aesthetics by delivering a unique, ‘‘floating‘‘ appearance.

We support our hardware development with investments in our proprietary set of advanced monitoring
applications (the ‘‘SunPower Monitoring System’’) and our EnergyLink customer portal, which enable customers
to gain visibility into their solar system production and household energy consumption. This software is available
for use on the web or through the SunPower mobile application on smartphones and tablets.

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Sales Channels, Residential Leasing Program, and other Financing Options

We sell our residential solar energy solutions to end customers through a variety of means, including cash

sales directly to end customers, sales to resellers, including our third-party dealer network, and sales of our
operations and maintenance (‘‘O&M’’) services.

We offer financing programs that are designed to offer customers a variety of options to obtain high

efficiency solar products and systems, including loans arranged through our third-party lending partners, in some
cases for no money down, or by leasing high efficiency solar systems at competitive energy rates. Since its
launch in 2011, our residential lease program, in partnership with third-party investors, provides U.S. customers
SunPower systems under 20-year lease agreements that include system maintenance and warranty coverage,
including warranties on system performance. SunPower residential lease customers have the option to purchase
their leased solar systems upon the sale or transfer of their home. These financing options enhance our ability to
provide individually-tailored solar solutions to a broad range of residential customers.

As part of our strategic goals to de-lever our balance sheet and simplify our financial statements, we

announced during the fourth quarter of 2017 our decision to monetize our interest in more than 400 MW of
residential lease assets that historically have been consolidated in our balance sheets. On November 5, 2018, we
sold a portion of our interest in certain entities that have historically held the assets and liabilities comprising our
residential lease business to an affiliate of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

For additional information, refer to ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to
Consolidated Financial Statements—Note 4. Business Combination and Divestitures, Note 7. Leasing, Note 11.
Equity Investments, and Note 12. Debt and Credit Sources.‘‘

Historically, we had the ability to sell portfolios of residential system leases to 8point3 Energy Partners LP
(‘‘8point3 Energy Partners’’), a joint Yieldco vehicle formed by us and First Solar, Inc. (‘‘First Solar’’) in which
we had an ownership stake. In fiscal 2017, following a review of our strategic alternatives, we decided to explore
a divestiture jointly with First Solar. On February 5, 2018, 8point3 Energy Partners entered into an Agreement
and Plan of Merger (the ‘‘8point3 Merger Agreement’’) with CD Clean Energy and Infrastructure V JV, LLC, an
equity fund managed by Capital Dynamics, Inc. and certain other co-investors (collectively, ‘‘Capital Dynamics’’
and the transaction, the ‘‘Divestiture Transaction’’), and we entered into a Support Agreement which obligated us
to support the Divestiture Transaction. On June 19, 2018, we completed the sale of our equity interest in 8point3
Energy Partners. As a result of this transaction, we received, after the payment of fees and expenses, merger
proceeds of approximately $359.9 million in cash and no longer directly or indirectly own any equity interests in
8point3 Energy Partners.

For additional information on transactions with, and the divestiture of our interest in 8point3 Energy

Partners, refer to ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to Consolidated Financial
Statements—Note 11. Equity Investments.’’

North America Commercial

Commercial Roof, Carport, and Ground Mounted Systems

As part of our complete solution product approach, we offer our Helix commercial market product. The
Helix system is a pre-engineered, modular solution that combines our industry-leading solar module technology
with integrated plug-and-play power stations, cable management systems, and mounting hardware that is built to
last and fast to install, enabling customers to scale their solar programs quickly with minimal business disruption.
The Helix platform is standardized across rooftop, carport, and ground installations and designed to lower system
cost while improving performance. The Helix platform is also bundled with our Smart Energy software analytics,
which provides our customers with information about their energy consumption and production, enabling them to
further reduce their energy costs.

We also offer a variety of commercial solutions designed to address a wide range of site requirements for

commercial rooftop, parking lot, and open space applications, including a portfolio of solutions utilizing framed
panels and a variety of internally or externally developed mounting methods for flat roof and high tilt roof
applications. Our commercial flat rooftop systems are designed to be lightweight and to interlock, enhancing
wind resistance and providing for secure, rapid installations.

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We offer parking lot structures designed specifically for SunPower panels, balance of system components,

and inverters and in fiscal 2015 expanded our capability to design and install innovative solar structures and
systems for carport applications. These systems are typically custom design-build projects that utilize standard
templates and design best practices to create a solution tailored to unique site conditions. SunPower’s highest
efficiency panels are especially well suited to stand-alone structures, such as those found in parking lot
applications, because our systems require less steel and other materials per unit of power or energy produced as
compared with our competitors.

Sales Channels and Financing Options

We sell our commercial solar energy solutions to commercial and public entity end customers through a
variety of means, including direct sales of turn-key engineering, procurement and construction (‘‘EPC’’) services,
selling energy to customers under power purchase agreements (‘‘PPAs’’), sales to our third-party dealer network
and sales of our O&M services.

Operations & Maintenance

Our solar power systems are designed to generate electricity over a system life typically exceeding 25 years.

We offer our customers various levels of post-installation O&M services with the objective of optimizing our
customers’ electrical energy production over the life of the system. The terms and conditions of post-installation
O&M services may provide for remote monitoring of system production and performance, including providing
performance reports, preventative maintenance, including solar module cleanings, corrective maintenance, and
rapid-response outage restoration, including repair or replacement of all system components covered under
warranty or major maintenance agreements.

We incorporate leading information technology platforms to facilitate the management of our solar power
systems operating globally. Real-time flow of data from our customers’ sites is aggregated centrally where an
engine applies advanced solar specific algorithms to detect and report potential performance issues. Our work
management system routes any anomalies to the appropriate responders to help ensure timely resolution. Our
performance model, PVSim, was developed over the last 20 years and has been audited by independent
engineers. Solar panel performance coefficients are established through independent third-party testing. The
SunPower Monitoring System also provides customers real-time performance status of their solar power system,
with access to historical or daily system performance data through our customer website
(www.sunpowermonitor.com). The SunPower Monitoring System is available through applications on Apple®
and Android™ devices. Some customers choose to install ‘‘digital signs‘‘ or kiosks to display system
performance information from the lobby of their facility. We believe these displays enhance our brand and
educate the public and prospective customers about solar power.

We typically provide a system output performance warranty, separate from our standard solar panel product

warranty, to customers that have subscribed to our post-installation O&M services. In connection with system
output performance warranties, we agree to pay liquidated damages in the event the system does not perform to
the stated specifications, with certain exclusions. The warranty excludes system output shortfalls attributable to
force majeure events, customer curtailment, irregular weather, and other similar factors. In the event that the
system output falls below the warrantied performance level during the applicable warranty period, and provided
that the shortfall is not caused by a factor that is excluded from the performance warranty, the warranty provides
that SunPower will pay the customer an amount based on the value of the shortfall of energy produced relative
to the applicable warrantied performance level. For leased systems, we provide a system output performance
warranty with similar terms and conditions as that for non-leased systems.

We calculate our expectation of system output performance based on a particular system’s design
specifications, including the type of panels used, the type of inverters used, site irradiation measures derived
from historical weather data, our historical experience as a manufacturer, EPC services provider, and project
developer as well as other unique design considerations such as system shading. The warrantied system output
performance level varies by system depending on the characteristics of the system and the negotiated agreement
with the customer, and the level declines over time to account for the expected degradation of the system. Actual
system output is typically measured annually for purposes of determining whether warrantied performance levels
have been met.

Our primary remedy for the system output performance warranty is our ongoing O&M services which
enable us to quickly identify and remediate potential issues before they have a significant impact on system

8

performance. We also have remedies in the form of our standard product warranties and third-party original
equipment manufacturer warranties that cover certain components, such as inverters, to prevent potential losses
under our system output performance warranties or to minimize further losses.

SunPower Energy Services Technology

Balance of System Components

‘‘Balance of system components‘‘ are components of a solar power system other than the solar panels, and
include mounting structures, charge controllers, grid interconnection equipment, and other devices, depending on
the specific requirements of a particular system and project.

Inverters

Every solar power system needs an inverter to transform the direct current electricity collected from the
solar panels into utility-grade AC power that is ready for use. We sell inverters manufactured by third parties,
some of which are SunPower-branded. We also have integrated microinverter technology that converts DC
generated by a single solar photovoltaic panel into AC directly on the panel. Subsequent to the sale of our
microinverter business in August 2018, we exclusively procure microinverters for the manufacture and
distribution of AC modules and discrete MLPE system solutions for the U.S. residential market from Enphase.
Panels with these factory-integrated microinverters perform better in shaded applications compared to
conventional string inverters and allow for optimization and monitoring at the solar panel level, enabling
maximum energy production by the solar system.

Smart Energy

We see ‘‘Smart Energy’’ as a way to harness our world’s energy potential by connecting the most powerful

and reliable solar systems on the market with an increasingly vast array of actionable data that can help our
customers make smarter decisions about their energy use. Our Smart Energy initiative is designed to add layers
of intelligent control to homes, buildings and grids—all personalized through easy-to-use customer interfaces. In
order to enhance the portfolio of Smart Energy solutions we offer, we continue to invest in integrated technology
solutions to help customers manage and optimize their CCOE measurement.

We have also negotiated several agreements with residential and commercial energy storage providers to

integrate storage technology into our residential and commercial solar solutions. By combining storage with
energy management, we lower our customers’ cost of energy through improvements in self-consumption, rate
arbitrage, demand management, and grid and market participation. We continue to work to make combined solar
and storage solutions broadly commercially available.

We continue to work with Enphase to develop next generation microinverters for use with our high

efficiency solar panels in order to enhance our portfolio of Smart Energy solutions. Panels with these
factory-integrated microinverters can convert direct current generated by the solar panel into alternating current,
enabling optimization and monitoring at the solar panel level to ensure maximum energy production by the solar
system.

SunPower Technologies

SunPower Solutions

In 2017, SunPower established the SunPower Solutions division to deliver products and services to
utility-scale photovoltaic (‘‘PV’’) customers around the world. SunPower Solutions enables developers,
independent power producers and EPCs to benefit from SunPower’s extensive experience over the past decade
developing, financing, constructing, operating and maintaining solar power plants. In the fourth quarter of fiscal
2018, this division was assigned to our SunPower Technologies Segment. We remain focused on transitioning
from project development to equipment supply through SunPower Solutions.

The SunPower Solutions division sells SunPower’s high performance P-Series, Maxeon 2 (formally known
as E-Series), and Maxeon 3 (formally known as X-Series) panels to non-U.S. customers. SunPower’s family of
utility power plant PV panels deliver higher efficiency and energy yield with lower degradation than competing
panels.

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Project Development and Financing

Our project development business refers to sales of our large-scale solar systems, including power plant
project development and project sales and EPC services for power plant construction. Our utility-scale solar
power systems are typically purchased by an investor or financing company and operated as central-station solar
power plants.

We are able to utilize various means to finance our utility-scale power plant development and construction
projects, which include arranging tax equity financing structures and utilizing non-recourse project debt facilities
in conjunction with project sales.

We believe that we possess a technological advantage as the leading manufacturer of back-contact,
back-junction cells that enables our panels to produce more electricity, last longer and resist degradation more
effectively. We believe that our technology allows us to deliver:

•

•

•

•

•

superior performance, including the ability to generate up to 45% more power per unit area than
conventional solar cells;

superior aesthetics, with our uniformly black surface design that eliminates highly visible reflective grid
lines and metal interconnection ribbons;

superior reliability, as confirmed by multiple independent reports and internal reliability data;

superior energy production per rated watt of power, as confirmed by multiple independent reports; and

solar power systems that are designed to generate electricity over a system life typically exceeding
25 years.

With industry-leading conversion efficiencies, we continuously improve our Maxeon solar cells and believe

they perform better and are tested more extensively to deliver maximum return on investment when compared
with the products of our competitors.

Solar Panels

Solar panels are solar cells electrically connected together and encapsulated in a weatherproof panel. Solar
cells are semiconductor devices that convert sunlight into direct current electricity. Our solar cells are designed
without highly reflective metal contact grids or current collection ribbons on the front of the solar cell, which
provides additional efficiency and allows our solar cells to be assembled into solar panels with a more uniform
appearance. Our Maxeon 3 solar panels, made with our Maxeon Gen 3 solar cells, have demonstrated panel
efficiencies exceeding 22% in high-volume production. In fiscal 2016, one of our standard production modules
set a world record for aperture area efficiency as tested by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. We
believe our Maxeon 3 solar panels are the highest efficiency solar panels available for the mass market, and we
continue to focus on increasing cell efficiency even as we produce solar cells with over 25% efficiency in a lab
setting. Because our solar cells are more efficient relative to conventional solar cells, when our solar cells are
assembled into panels, the assembly cost per watt is less because more power is incorporated into a given size
panel. Higher solar panel efficiency allows installers to mount a solar power system with more power within a
given roof or site area and can reduce per watt installation costs. Our suite of SunPower solar panels provides
customers a variety of features to fit their needs, including the SunPower Signature black design which allows
the panels to blend seamlessly into the rooftop. We offer panels that can be used both with inverters that require
transformers as well as with the highest performing transformer-less inverters to maximize output. Both our
Maxeon 3 and Maxeon 2 panels have proven performance with low levels of degradation, as validated by
third-party performance tests. Since fiscal 2016, we launched a line of solar panels under the Performance Series
(‘‘P-Series’’) product name. These products utilize a proprietary manufacturing process to assemble conventional
silicon solar cells into panels with increased efficiency and reliability compared with conventional panels.
Designed to target a new set of customers and global markets, we expect P-Series panels to contribute to the
growth of both of SunPower’s business segments.

In 2018, we continued the ramp up of our next-generation solar cells and panels with our Next Generation

Technology (‘‘NGT‘‘ or Maxeon 5), which offer efficiency of approximately 25%, roughly in line with our
Maxeon 3 solar panels. When fully ramped, we expect the Maxeon 5 panels to compete with the mono-PERC
solar panels, but with superior levelized cost of energy due to higher performance and durability. During the
fourth quarter of 2018, we certified our first Maxeon 5 product, a 72-cell format panel rated at 450 watts, and

10

expect delivery to initial customers in the first quarter of 2019. We eventually plan to transform all of our legacy
Maxeon 2 production capacity to Maxeon 5. We are also actively pursuing a variety of partnerships and other
options to enable further NGT expansion to gigawatt scale.

Warranties

SunPower provides a combined 25-year standard solar panel product and power warranty for defects in
materials and workmanship. The solar product warranty also warrants that Maxeon 2 and Maxeon 3 panels will
provide 98% of the panel’s minimum peak power (‘‘MPP’’) rating for the first year, declining due to expected
degradation by no more than 0.25% per year for the following 24 years, such that the power output at the end of
year 25 will be at least 92% of the panel’s MPP rating. Our P-Series panels are warranted to provide 97% of the
panel’s MPP rating for the first year, declining due to expected degradation by no more than 0.6% per year for
the following 24 years, such that the power output at the end of year 25 will be at least 82.6% of the panel’s
MPP rating. Our warranty provides that we will repair or replace any defective solar panels during the warranty
period. We also pass through long-term warranties from the original equipment manufacturers of certain system
components to customers for periods ranging from five to 20 years. In addition, we generally warrant our
workmanship on installed systems for periods ranging up to 25 years.

Research and Development

We engage in extensive research and development efforts to improve solar cell efficiency through the
enhancement of our existing products, development of new techniques, and by reductions in manufacturing cost
and complexity. Our research and development group works closely with our manufacturing facilities, our
equipment suppliers and our customers to improve our solar cell design and to lower solar cell, solar panel and
system product manufacturing and assembly costs. In addition, we have dedicated employees who work closely
with our current and potential suppliers of crystalline silicon, a key raw material used in the manufacture of our
solar cells, to develop specifications that meet our standards and ensure the high quality we require, while at the
same time controlling costs. Under our Research & Collaboration Agreement with Total, our majority
stockholder, we have established a joint committee to engage in long-term research and development projects
with continued focus on maintaining and expanding our technology position in the crystalline silicon domain and
ensuring our competitiveness. Refer to ‘‘Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition
and Results of Operations—Research and Development.’’

Supplier Relationships, Manufacturing, and Panel Assembly

We purchase polysilicon, ingots, wafers, solar cells, balance of system components, and inverters from

various manufacturers on both a contracted and a purchase order basis. We have contracted with some of our
suppliers for multi-year supply agreements. Under such agreements, we have annual minimum purchase
obligations and in certain cases prepayment obligations. Refer to ‘‘Item 7. Management’s Discussion and
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources—Contractual
Obligations’’ for further information regarding the amount of our purchase obligations in fiscal 2019 and beyond.
Under other supply agreements, we are required to make prepayments to vendors over the terms of the
arrangements. As of December 30, 2018, advances to suppliers totaled $172 million. We may be unable to
recover such prepayments if the credit conditions of these suppliers materially deteriorate or if we are otherwise
unable to fulfill our obligations under these supply agreements. For further information regarding our future
prepayment obligations, refer to ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to Consolidated
Financial Statements—Note 10. Commitments and Contingencies—Advances to Suppliers.’’ We currently believe
our supplier relationships and various short- and long-term contracts will afford us the volume of material and
services required to meet our planned output over the next several years. For more information about risks
related to our supply chain, including without limitation risks relating to announced tariffs on solar cells and
modules imported into the U.S., refer to ‘‘Item 1A. Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Supply Chain.’’

We are working with our suppliers and partners along all steps of the value chain to reduce costs by
improving manufacturing technologies and expanding economies of scale. Crystalline silicon is the principal
commercial material for solar cells and is used in several forms, including single-crystalline, or monocrystalline
silicon, multi-crystalline, or polycrystalline silicon, ribbon and sheet silicon, and thin-layer silicon. Our solar cell
value chain starts with high purity silicon called polysilicon. Polysilicon is created by refining quartz or sand.

11

Polysilicon is melted and grown into crystalline ingots and sawed into wafers by business partners

specializing in those processes. The wafers are processed into solar cells in our manufacturing facilities located
in the Philippines and Malaysia. During fiscal 2017, we completed the construction of the solar cell
manufacturing facility that we own and operate in the Philippines which has an annual capacity of 450 MW. The
solar cell manufacturing facility we own and operate in Malaysia has a total rated annual capacity of over
700 MW.

We use our solar cells to manufacture our Maxeon 3 and Maxeon 2 solar panels at our solar panel assembly

facilities located in Mexico and France, while we source solar cells from third parties for use in our P-Series
solar panels at our solar panel assembly facility in Mexico and in Hillsboro, Oregon starting in 2019. Our solar
panel manufacturing facilities have a combined total rated annual capacity of over 1.4 GW.

We source the solar panels and balance of system components based on quality, performance, and cost
considerations both internally and from third-party suppliers. We typically assemble proprietary components,
while we purchase generally available components from third-party suppliers. The balance of system components,
along with the EPC cost to construct the project, can comprise as much as two-thirds of the cost of a solar power
system. Therefore, we focus on standardizing our products with the goal of driving down installation costs, such
as with our Equinox and Helix systems.

Customers

Effective in the fourth quarter of 2018, we now operate in two segments: (i) SunPower Energy Services
Segment and (ii) SunPower Technologies Segment. Our scope and scale allow us to deliver solar solutions across
all segments, ranging from consumer homeowners to the largest commercial and governmental entities in the
world. Our customers typically include investors, financial institutions, project developers, electric utilities,
independent power producers, commercial and governmental entities, production home builders, residential
owners and small commercial building owners. We leverage a combination of direct sales as well as a broad
partner ecosystem to efficiently reach our global customer base.

We work with development, construction, system integration, and financing companies to deliver our solar

power products and solutions to wholesale sellers, retail sellers, and retail users of electricity. In the United
States, commercial and electric utility customers typically choose to purchase solar electricity under a PPA with
an investor or financing company that buys the system from us. End-user customers typically pay the investors
and financing companies over an extended period of time based on energy they consume from the solar power
systems, rather than paying for the full capital cost of purchasing the solar power systems. Our utility-scale solar
power systems are typically purchased by an investor or financing company, and operated as central-station solar
power plants. In addition, our third-party dealer network and our new homes division have deployed thousands
of SunPower rooftop solar power systems to residential customers. See ‘‘Item 7. Management’s Discussion and
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Revenue‘‘ for our significant customers.

Competition

The market for solar electric power technologies is competitive and continually evolving. In the last year,

we faced increased competition, resulting in price reductions in the market and reduced margins, which may
continue and could lead to loss of market share. Our solar power products and systems compete with many
competitors in the solar power market, including, but not limited to:

•

•

SunPower Energy Services Segment: Canadian Solar Inc., Hanwha QCELLS Corporation, JA Solar
Holdings Co., Kyocera Corporation, LG Corporation, Jinko Solar, NRG Energy, Inc., Panasonic
Corporation, Sharp Corporation, SunRun, Inc., Tesla, Inc., Trina Solar Ltd., Vivint, Inc., LONGi Solar,
REC Group, Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd., and Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd., First
Solar, Inc.

SunPower Technologies: Hanwha QCELLS Corporation, JA Solar Holdings Co., Trina Solar Ltd.,
Yingli Green Energy Holding Co., Ltd., Jinko Solar, First Solar Inc., Canadian SolarInc., LONGi Solar,
Tongwei Co. Ltd., Array Technologies, Inc., Soltec, NEXTracker, Inc., Convert Italia, Arctech, Inc.

12

We also face competition from resellers that have developed related offerings that compete with our product

and service offerings, or have entered into strategic relationships with other existing solar power system
providers. We compete for limited government funding for research and development contracts, customer tax
rebates and other programs that promote the use of solar, and other renewable forms of energy with other
renewable energy providers and customers.

In addition, universities, research institutions, and other companies have brought to market alternative
technologies, such as thin-film solar technology, which compete with our PV technology in certain applications.
Furthermore, the solar power market in general competes with other energy providers such as electricity
produced from conventional fossil fuels supplied by utilities and other sources of renewable energy such as wind,
hydro, biomass, solar thermal, and emerging distributed generation technologies such as micro-turbines, sterling
engines and fuel cells.

In the large-scale on-grid solar power systems market, we face direct competition from a number of
companies, including those that manufacture, distribute, or install solar power systems as well as construction
companies that have expanded into the renewable sector. In addition, we will occasionally compete with
distributed generation equipment suppliers.

We believe that the key competitive factors in the market for solar power systems include:

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

total system price;

LCOE evaluation;

CCOE evaluation;

power efficiency and performance;

aesthetic appearance of solar panels and systems;

speed and ease of installation through modular solutions such as our Helix system;

strength of distribution relationships;

availability of third-party financing and investments;

established sales channels to customers;

timeliness of new product introductions;

bankability, strength, and reputation of our company; and

warranty protection, quality, and customer service.

We believe that we can compete favorably with respect to each of these elements, although we may be at a
disadvantage in comparison to larger companies with broader product lines, greater technical service and support
capabilities, and financial resources. For more information on risks related to our competition, please see the risk
factors set forth under the caption ‘‘Item 1A. Risk Factors‘‘ including ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales
Channels—The increase in the global supply of solar cells and panels, and increasing competition, may cause
substantial downward pressure on the prices of such products and cause us to lose sales or market share,
resulting in lower revenues, earnings, and cash flows.’’

Intellectual Property

We rely on a combination of patent, copyright, trade secret, trademark, and contractual protections to

establish and protect our proprietary rights. ‘‘SunPower’’ and the ‘‘SunPower’’ logo are our registered trademarks
in countries throughout the world for use with solar cells, solar panels, energy monitoring systems, inverters, and
mounting systems. We also hold registered trademarks for, among others, ‘‘SunPower Equinox,’’ ‘‘SunPower
Giving,’’ ‘‘SunPower Horizons,’’ ‘‘SunPower Energy Services,’’ ‘‘SunPower Technologies,’’ ‘‘Bottle the Sun,’’
‘‘Demand Better Solar,’’ ‘‘EDDiE,’’ ‘‘EnergyLink,’’ ‘‘Equinox Energy Systems and Design,’’ ‘‘Equinox Solar
Systems and Design,’’ ‘‘Equinox,’’ ‘‘Experiential Learning. Expanding Opportunities.,’’ ‘‘Equinox,’’ ‘‘Helix,’’
‘‘InvisiMount,’’ ‘‘Light on Land,’’ ‘‘Maxeon,’’ ‘‘Oasis,’’ ‘‘Oasis Geo,’’ ‘‘Powering a Brighter Tomorrow,’’
‘‘PowerLight,’’ ‘‘Serengeti,’’ ‘‘Smart Energy,’’ ‘‘Smarter Solar,’’ ‘‘Solar Showdown,’’ ‘‘Sol,’’ ‘‘Solaire,’’ ‘‘Solaire
Generation,’’ ‘‘SunTile,’’ ‘‘SunPower Electric,’’ ‘‘Supo Solar,’’ ‘‘More Energy. For Life.,’’ ‘‘The Planet’s Most

13

Powerful Solar,’’ and ‘‘The Power of One’’ in certain countries. We are seeking and will continue to seek
registration of the ‘‘SunPower‘‘ trademark and other trademarks in additional countries as we believe is
appropriate. As of December 30, 2018, we held registrations for 26 trademarks in the United States, and had
4 trademark registration applications pending. We also held 68 trademark registrations and had 11 trademark
applications pending in foreign jurisdictions. We typically require our business partners to enter into
confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements before we disclose any sensitive aspects of our solar cells,
technology, or business plans. We typically enter into proprietary information agreements with employees,
consultants, vendors, customers, and joint venture partners.

We own multiple patents and patent applications that cover aspects of the technology in the solar cells,
mounting products, and electrical and electronic systems that we currently manufacture and market. We continue
to file for and receive new patent rights on a regular basis. The lifetime of a utility patent typically extends for
20 years from the date of filing with the relevant government authority. We assess appropriate opportunities for
patent protection of those aspects of our technology, designs, methodologies, and processes that we believe
provide significant competitive advantages to us, and for licensing opportunities of new technologies relevant to
our business. As of December 30, 2018, we held 464 patents in the United States, which will expire at various
times through 2037, and had 246 U.S. patent applications pending. We also held 535 patents and had 592 patent
applications pending in foreign jurisdictions. While patents are an important element of our intellectual property
strategy, our business as a whole is not dependent on any one patent or any single pending patent application.
We additionally rely on trade secret rights to protect our proprietary information and know-how. We employ
proprietary processes and customized equipment in our manufacturing facilities. We therefore require employees
and consultants to enter into confidentiality agreements to protect them.

When appropriate, we enforce our intellectual property rights against other parties. For more information
about risks related to our intellectual property, please see the risk factors set forth under the caption ‘‘Item 1A.
Risk Factors‘‘ including ‘‘Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property—We depend on our intellectual property,
and we may face intellectual property infringement claims that could be time-consuming and costly to defend and
could result in the loss of significant rights,‘‘ ‘‘Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property—We rely substantially
upon trade secret laws and contractual restrictions to protect our proprietary rights, and, if these rights are not
sufficiently protected, our ability to compete and generate revenue could suffer,‘‘ and ‘‘Risks Related to Our
Intellectual Property—We may not obtain sufficient patent protection on the technology embodied in the solar
products we currently manufacture and market, which could harm our competitive position and increase our
expenses.’’

Backlog

We believe that backlog is not a meaningful indicator of our future business prospects. In our SunPower

Energy Services Segment’s residential and commercial and international DG markets, we often sell large
volumes of solar panels, mounting systems, and other solar equipment to third parties, which are typically
ordered by our third-party dealer network and customers under standard purchase orders with relatively short
delivery lead-times. Additionally, we often require project financing for development and construction of our
SunPower Technologies Segment’s solar power plant projects, which require significant investments before the
equity is later sold by us to investors. Therefore, our solar power system project backlog would exclude sales
contracts signed and completed in the same quarter and contracts still conditioned upon obtaining financing.
Based on these reasons, we believe backlog at any particular date is not necessarily a meaningful indicator of our
future revenue for any particular period of time.

Regulations

Public Policy Considerations

Different public policy mechanisms have been used by governments to accelerate the adoption and use of
solar power. Examples of customer-focused financial mechanisms include capital cost rebates, performance-based
incentives, feed-in tariffs, tax credits, and net metering. Some of these government mandates and economic
incentives are scheduled to be reduced or to expire, or could be eliminated altogether. Capital cost rebates
provide funds to customers based on the cost and size of a customer’s solar power system. Performance-based
incentives provide funding to a customer based on the energy produced by their solar power system. Feed-in
tariffs pay customers for solar power system generation based on energy produced, at a rate generally guaranteed

14

for a period of time. Tax credits reduce a customer’s taxes at the time the taxes are due. Net metering allows
customers to deliver to the electric grid any excess electricity produced by their on-site solar power systems, and
to be credited for that excess electricity at or near the full retail price of electricity.

In addition to the mechanisms described above, new market development mechanisms to encourage the use

of renewable energy sources continue to emerge. For example, many states in the United States have adopted
renewable portfolio standards which mandate that a certain portion of electricity delivered to customers come
from eligible renewable energy resources. Some states, such as California and Hawaii, have significantly
expanded their renewable portfolio standards in recent years. In certain developing countries, governments are
establishing initiatives to expand access to electricity, including initiatives to support off-grid rural electrification
using solar power. For more information about how we avail ourselves of the benefits of public policies and the
risks related to public policies, please see the risk factors set forth under the caption ‘‘Item 1A. Risk Factors‘‘
including ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales Channels—The reduction, modification or elimination of government
incentives could cause our revenue to decline and harm our financial results,‘‘ ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales
Channels—Existing regulations and policies and changes to these regulations and policies may present technical,
regulatory, and economic barriers to the purchase and use of solar power products, which may significantly
reduce demand for our products and services,‘‘ and ‘‘Changes in international trade policies, tariffs, or trade
disputes could significantly and adversely affect our business, revenues, margins, results of operations, and cash
flows.’’

Environmental Regulations

We use, generate, and discharge toxic, volatile, or otherwise hazardous chemicals and wastes in our research

and development, manufacturing, and construction activities. We are subject to a variety of foreign, U.S. federal
and state, and local governmental laws and regulations related to the purchase, storage, use, and disposal of
hazardous materials. We believe that we have all environmental permits necessary to conduct our business and
expect to obtain all necessary environmental permits for future activities. We believe that we have properly
handled our hazardous materials and wastes and have appropriately remediated any contamination at any of our
premises. For more information about risks related to environmental regulations, please see the risk factors set
forth under the caption ‘‘Item 1A. Risk Factors‘‘ including ‘‘Risks Related to Our Operations—Compliance with
environmental regulations can be expensive, and noncompliance with these regulations may result in adverse
publicity and potentially significant monetary damages and fines.’’

Information concerning certain limited activities in Iran

Information concerning TOTAL’s activities related to Iran that took place in 2018 provided in this section is

disclosed according to Section 13(r) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (‘‘U.S. Exchange
Act’’). TOTAL believes that these activities are not sanctionable, including for activities previously disclosed.
Total S.A. and any of its subsidiaries and affiliates are collectively referred to as the Group.

The Group’s operational activities related to Iran were stopped in 2018 following the withdrawal of the
United States from the JCPOA in May 2018 and prior to the re-imposition of U.S. secondary sanctions on the oil
industry as of November 5, 2018.

Statements in this section concerning affiliates intending or expecting to continue activities described below

are subject to such activities continuing to be permissible under applicable international economic sanctions
regimes.

a) Exploration & Production

Following the suspension of certain international economic sanctions against Iran on January 16, 2016, the
Group commenced various business development activities in Iran. Total E&P South Pars S.A.S. (‘‘TEPSP’’) (a
wholly-owned affiliate), CNPC International Ltd. (‘‘CNPCI’’) (a wholly-owned affiliate of China National
Petroleum Company) and Petropars Ltd. (‘‘Petropars’’) (a wholly-owned affiliate of NIOC) signed a 20-year
risked service contract in July 2017, (the ‘‘Risked Service Contract’’) for the development and production of
phase 11 of the South Pars gas field (‘‘SP11’’).TEPSP (50.1%) was the operator and a partner of the project
alongside CNPCI (30%) and Petropars (19.9%). These companies entered into a joint operating agreement in July
2017 (the ‘‘JOA’’) concerning, among other things, the governance of their obligations under the Risked Service
Contract and the designation of TEPSP as the project’s operator.

15

In 2018, TEPSP continued conducting petroleum operations on behalf of the above-mentioned consortium in

accordance with the terms and conditions of the Risked Service Contract and the JOA. In particular, TEPSP:
(i) held several meetings with the Iranian authorities, NIOC and other Iranian state owned/controlled entities;
(ii) launched tenders for award of service contracts for the purposes of the SP11 project; (iii) negotiated various
agreements (such as service and/or supply agreements and bank service agreements); and (iv) performed other
activities under the Risked Service Contract and the JOA.

In 2018, TEPSP completed the technical studies, which were started in November 2016, in accordance with

the technical services agreement (the ‘‘TSA’’) between NIOC and TEPSP, acting on behalf of the consortium.

However, as a result of the withdrawal of the U.S. from the JCPOA in May 2018, TOTAL ceased all of its
activities related to the SP11 project and finalized its withdrawal from the SP11 project on October 29, 2018, at
which time it transferred its participating interest and operatorship of the project to CNPCI.

The MOU entered into between TOTAL and NIOC in January 2016 to assess potential developments in Iran
(including South Azadegan) was amended to include North Azadegan and to extend its duration. NIOC provided
TOTAL in 2017 with technical data on the Azadegan oil field so that it could assess potential development of
this field. Representatives of TOTAL held technical meetings in 2017 with representatives of NIOC and its
affiliated companies and carried out a technical review of the Azadegan (South & North) oil field as well as the
Iran LNG Project (a project contemplating a 10 Mt/y LNG production facility at Tombak Port on Iran’s Persian
Gulf coast), the results of which were partially disclosed to NIOC and relevant affiliated companies. In addition,
TOTAL signed an MOU in 2017 with an international company to evaluate jointly the Azadegan oil field
opportunity with NIOC. This international company decided in February 2018 to withdraw from this technical
cooperation and a MOU termination agreement was formally executed with TOTAL on May 16, 2018. Technical
studies were pursued by TOTAL until March 2018 on the Azadegan area with regular contacts with NIOC. All
work and contacts with NIOC on this subject ceased at the end of March 2018.

During 2018, in connection with the activities under the aforementioned Risked Service Contract and
MOUs, and to discuss other new opportunities, representatives of TOTAL attended meetings with the Iranian oil
and gas ministry and several Iranian companies with ties to the government of Iran. In connection with travel to
Iran in 2018 by certain employees of the Group, TOTAL made payments to Iranian authorities for visas, airport
services, exit fees and similar travel-related charges. In addition, representatives of TOTAL had meetings in
France with the Iranian ambassador.

Neither revenues nor profits were recognized from any of the aforementioned activities under the

aforementioned Risked Service Contract and MOUs in 2018.

Maersk Oil studied two potential projects with NIOC, prior to the acquisition of Maersk Oil by TOTAL in

March 2018. These studies ceased after a meeting with NIOC representatives in May 2018.

The Tehran branch office of TEPSP, opened in 2017 for the purposes of the SP11 project, ceased all
operational activities prior to November 1, 2018 and will be closed and de-registered in 2019. Since November
2018, Total Iran BV maintains a local representative office in Tehran with a few employees, solely for
non-operational functions. Concerning payments to Iranian entities in 2018, Total Iran BV and Elf Petroleum Iran
collectively made payments of approximately IRR 31.7 billion (approximately $300,000 (Converted using the
average exchange rate for fiscal year 2018, as published by Bloomberg.) to the Iranian administration for taxes
and social security contributions concerning the personnel of the aforementioned representative office and
residual obligations related to various prior risked service contracts. In 2019, similar types of payments are to be
made in connection with maintaining the representative office in Tehran, albeit in lower amounts. None of these
payments has been or is expected to be executed in U.S. dollars.

Furthermore, Total E&P UK Limited (‘‘TEP UK’’), a wholly-owned affiliate, holds a 1% interest in a joint
venture for the Bruce field in the United Kingdom with Serica Energy (UK) Limited (‘‘Serica’’) (98%, operator)
and BP Exploration Operating Company Limited (‘‘BP’’) (1%), following the completion of the sale of
42.25% of TEP UK’s interests in the Bruce field on November 30, 2018 pursuant to a sale and purchase
agreement dated August 2, 2018 between TEP UK and Serica. Upon the closing of the transaction on
November 30, 2018, all other prior joint venture partners also sold their interests in the Bruce field to Serica (BP
sold 36% retaining a 1% interest; BHP Billiton Petroleum Great Britain Limited (‘‘BHP’’) sold their full 16%
interest and Marubeni Oil & Gas (U.K.) Limited ((‘‘Marubeni’’) sold their full 3.75%).

16

The Bruce field joint venture is party to an agreement (the ‘‘Bruce Rhum Agreement’’) governing certain

transportation, processing and operation services provided to another joint venture at the Rhum field in the UK,
co-owned by Serica (50%, operator) and the Iranian Oil Company UK Ltd (‘‘IOC’’), a subsidiary of NIOC
(50%). Under the terms of the Bruce Rhum Agreement, the Rhum field owners pay a proportion of the operating
costs of the Bruce field facilities calculated on a gas throughput basis. IOC’s share of costs incurred under the
Bruce Rhum Agreement have been paid to TEP UK in 2018 by Naftiran Intertrade Company Limited (‘‘NICO’’),
the trading branch of the National Iranian Oil Company (‘‘NIOC’’). NIOC is the parent company of IOC and an
Iranian government owned corporation. In 2018, based upon TEP UK’s 1% interest in the Bruce field and
income from the net cash flow sharing arrangement with Serica, gross revenue to TEP UK from IOC’s share of
the Rhum field resulting from the Bruce Rhum Agreement was approximately £8 million. This sum was used to
offset operating costs on the Bruce field and as such, generated no net profit to TEP UK. This arrangement is
expected to continue in 2019.

In 2018, TEP UK acted as agent for BHP and Marubeni, which faced difficulty securing banking

arrangements allowing them to accept payments from IOC, and, thus, received payments from IOC in relation to
BHP and Marubeni’s share of income from the Bruce Rhum Agreement under the terms of an agency agreement
entered into in June 2018 between BHP, Marubeni and TEP UK (the ‘‘Agency Agreement’’). Payments made
from IOC to BHP and Marubeni in 2018 related to the periods prior to the completion of their divestment to
Serica in November 2018. Total payment received on behalf of BHP and Marubeni by TEP UK under this
arrangement in 2018 was approximately £7 million. This amount relates to income due to BHP and Marubeni
under the Bruce Rhum Agreement for 2017 and 2018. TEP UK transferred all income received under the Agency
Agreement to BHP and Marubeni and provided the service on a no profit, no loss basis. The Agency Agreement
is expected to be terminated upon receipt of all payments relating to the period up to November 30, 2018.

Prior to the re-imposition of U.S. secondary sanctions on the oil industry as of November 5, 2018, TEP UK
liaised directly with IOC concerning its interest in the Bruce Rhum Agreement and it received payments directly
for services provided to IOC under the Bruce Rhum Agreement. In October 2018, the U.S. Treasury
Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (‘‘OFAC’’) granted a new conditional license to BP and Serica
authorizing the provision of services to the Rhum field, following the reinstatement of U.S. secondary sanctions.
The principal condition of the OFAC license is that the Iranian government’s shareholding in IOC is transferred
into a trust in order that Iran may not derive any benefit from the Rhum field or exercise any control while the
U.S. secondary sanctions are in place. A Jersey based trust has been put in place with the trustee holding IOC’s
shares in the Rhum field. IOC’s interest is now managed by a new independent management company
established by the trust and referred to as the ‘‘Rhum Management Company’’ (‘‘RMC’’) and where necessary
TEP UK liaises, and expects to continue doing so in 2019, with RMC in relation to the Bruce Rhum Agreement.

TEP UK is also party to an agreement with Serica whereby TEP UK uses reasonable endeavors to evacuate
Rhum NGL from the St Fergus Terminal (the ‘‘Rhum NGL Agreement’’). TEP UK provides this service - subject
to Serica having title to all of the Rhum NGL to be evacuated and Serica having a valid license from OFAC for
the activity - on a cost basis, but for which TEP UK charges a monthly handling fee that generates an income of
approximately £35,000 per annum relating to IOC’s 50% stake in the Rhum field. After costs, TEP UK realizes
little profit from this arrangement.TEP UK expects to continue this activity in 2019.

Following the acquisition of Maersk Oil in 2018, the undeveloped Yeoman discovery is now wholly owned

by the Group, under license P2158 granted to Maersk Oil North Sea UK Limited, recently renamed Total E&P
North Sea UK Limited (‘‘TEPNSUK’’). Yeoman is situated adjacent to the Pardis discovery in which IOC held
an interest, which it sold in October 2018. Prior to this divestment, non-legally binding technical and commercial
discussions had taken place between TEPNSUK, IOC and the UK Government’s Oil and Gas Authority during
the first half of 2018 regarding a potential joint development of Yeoman and Pardis but no contractual
arrangements were implemented in connection with such discussions. Also prior to this divestement, other
discussions had taken place between TEPNSUK and IOC on an informal basis regarding a potential farm-in to
Pardis by Maersk Oil.

Lastly, TOTAL S.A. paid approximately €8,000 to Iranian authorities related to various patents (Section

560.509 of the U.S. Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations provides an authorization for certain
transactions in connection with patent, trademark, copyright or other intellectual property protection in the

17

United States or Iran, including payments for such services and payments to persons in Iran directly connected
to intellectual property rights, and TOTAL believes that the activities related to the industrial property rights
described in this point 3.1.9.2 are consistent with that authorization.) in 2018. Similar payments are expected to
be made in 2019 for such patents.

b) Other business segments
In 2018, TOTAL S.A. paid fees of approximately €1,500 to Iranian authorities related to the maintenance

and protection of trademarks and designs in Iran. Similar payments are expected to be made in 2019.

Trading & Shipping

Following the suspension of applicable EU and U.S. economic sanctions in 2016, the Group commenced the

purchase of Iranian hydrocarbons through its wholly-owned affiliate TOTSA TOTAL OIL TRADING SA
(‘‘TOTSA’’). In 2018, the Group continued its trading activities with Iran via TOTSA, which purchased
approximately 18 Mb of Iranian crude oil for nearly €1 billion pursuant to term contracts. It is not possible to
estimate the gross revenue and net profit related to these purchases because the totality of this crude oil was used
to supply the Group’s refineries. In addition, in 2018, approximately 1 Mb of petroleum products were sold to
entities with ties to the government of Iran. These activities generated gross revenue of nearly €43 million and a
net profit of approximately €1 million. The Group ceased these activities in June 2018.

Gas, Renewables & Power

Saft Groupe S.A. (‘‘Saft’’), a wholly-owned affiliate, in 2018 sold signaling and backup battery systems for

metros and railways as well as products for the utilities and oil and gas sectors to companies in Iran, including
some having direct or indirect ties with the Iranian government. In 2018, this activity generated gross revenue of
approximately €2.5 million and net profit of approximately €0.3 million. Saft ceased this activity in 2018. Saft
also attended the Iran Oil Show in 2018, where it discussed business opportunities with Iranian customers,
including those with direct or indirect ties with the Iranian government. Saft ceased this activity in 2018.

Total Eren, a company in which Total Eren Holding holds an interest of 68.76% (TOTAL S.A. owns

33.86% of Total Eren Holding), had preliminary discussions during January to March 2018 for possible
investments in renewable energy projects in Iran, including meetings with ministries of the Iranian government.
These discussions and meetings ceased as of March 2018 and neither revenues nor profits were recognized from
this activity in 2018.

Refining & Chemicals

As of May 2018, Hutchinson SA and its affiliates no longer accepted orders from Iranian companies and

ceased all activities, in general, with Iran and all Iranian companies prior to August 6, 2018.

Le Joint Français, a wholly-owned affiliate of Hutchinson SA, sold vehicular O-ring seals in 2018 to Iran

Khodro, a company in which the government of Iran holds a 20% interest and which is supervised by Iran’s
Industrial Management Organization. This activity generated gross revenue of approximately €54,056 and net
profit of approximately €8,108. Le Joint Français also sold O-ring seals in 2018 to Al Khalsan. This activity
generated gross revenue of approximately €29,348 and net profit of approximately €4,402.

Paulstra S.N.C., a wholly-owned affiliate of Hutchinson SA, obtained in 2017 an order from Iran Khodro to
sell vehicular anti-vibration systems over a 5-year period. This activity did not generate any gross revenue or net
profit in 2018 because Paulstra did not delivery any product to Iran Khodro. The order was terminated in 2018.
Paulstra S.N.C. also sold oil seals in 2018 to Iran Khodro. This activity generated gross revenue of
approximately €1,078,887 and net profit of approximately €161,833.

Catelsa Caceres, a wholly-owned affiliate of Hutchinson Iberia, itself wholly-owned by Hutchinson SA, sold
sealing products to Iran Khodro in 2018. This activity generated gross revenue of approximately €1,449 and net
profit of approximately €217.

Hutchinson GMBH, a wholly-owned affiliate of Hutchinson SA, sold hoses for automotive vehicles to Iran

Khodro in 2018. This activity generated gross revenue for approximately €257,400 and net profit of
approximately €38,610. The last shipments from Hutchinson and its affiliates to Iran Khodro were in August
2018 and last payments were made in October 2018.

18

Hanwha Total Petrochemicals (‘‘HTC’’), a joint venture in which Total Holdings UK Limited (a

wholly-owned affiliate) holds a 50% interest and Hanwha General Chemicals holds a 50% interest, purchased
approximately 17 Mb of condensates from NIOC for approximately KRW 1,310 billion (approximately
$1.2 billion) from January to July 2018, then HTC has stopped purchasing from NIOC. These condensates are
used as raw material for certain of HTC’s steam crackers. HTC also chartered fifteen tankers of condensates with
National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC), a subsidiary of NIOC, for approximately KRW 24 billion
(approximately $22.3 million). In November 2018, South Korea was granted a significant reduction exemption
waiver (the ‘‘SRE waiver’’) allowing it to import Iranian condensate from NIOC for six months. For 2019, based
on the SRE waiver, HTC is reviewing the feasibility to resume purchases from NIOC.

Total Research & Technology Feluy (‘‘TRTF’’, a wholly-owned affiliate), Total Marketing Services

(‘‘TMS’’, a wholly-owned affiliate), and Total Raffinage Chimie (‘‘TRC’’) paid in 2018 fees totaling
approximately €1,000 to Iranian authorities related to various patents. Similar payments are expected to be made
by TRTF and TRC in 2019. TMS abandoned its patent rights in Iran in 2018, thus no payments are expected by
TMS in 2019.

Marketing & Services

Until December 2012, at which time it sold its entire interest, the Group held a 50% interest in the

lubricants retail company Beh Tam (formerly Beh Total) along with Behran Oil (50%), a company controlled by
entities with ties to the government of Iran. As part of the sale of the Group’s interest in Beh Tam, TOTAL S.A.
agreed to license the trademark ‘‘Total’’ to Beh Tam for an initial 3-year period (renewed for an additional 3 year
period) for the sale by Beh Tam of lubricants to domestic consumers in Iran. Royalty payments for 2014 were
received by TOTAL S.A. during the first semester of 2018 in the amount of approximately €730,000. There
remain outstanding royalty payments for 2015 through 2017 in favor of TOTAL S.A. This licensing agreement
was terminated in 2018. In addition, representatives of Total Oil Asia-Pacific Pte Ltd, a wholly-owned affiliate,
visited Behran Oil beginning 2018 regarding the potential purchase of 50% of the share capital of Beh Tam.
Discussions on this matter ended following the announcement of the re-imposition of U.S. secondary sanctions
on the oil industry.

Total Marketing Middle East FZE, a wholly-owned affiliate, sold lubricants to Beh Tam in 2018. The sale in

2018 of approximately 43 t of lubricants and special fluids generated gross revenue of approximately AED
500,000 (approximately $136,000) and net profit of approximately AED 260,000 (approximately $ 71,000)
(Converted using the average exchange rate for fiscal year 2018, as published by Bloomberg). The company
stopped all transactions with this customer as of August 2018.

Total Marketing France (‘‘TMF’’), a company wholly-owned by TMS, provided in 2018 fuel payment cards

to the Iranian embassy and delegation to UNESCO in France for use in the Group’s service stations. In 2018,
these activities generated gross revenue of approximately €32,000 and net profit of approximately €5,000. The
company expects to continue this activity in 2019.

TMF also sold jet fuel in 2018 to Iran Air as part of its airplane refueling activities in France. The sale of
approximately 260 cubic meters of jet fuel generated gross revenue of approximately €130,000 and net profit of
approximately €570. The company stopped all transactions with this customer prior to November 5, 2018.

Total Belgium, a wholly-owned affiliate, provided in 2018 fuel payment cards to the Iranian embassy in

Brussels (Belgium) for use in the Group’s service stations. In 2018, these activities generated gross revenue of
approximately €11,000 and net profit of approximately €4,000. The company expects to continue this activity in
2019.

Employees

As of December 30, 2018, we had approximately 6,600 full-time employees worldwide, of which

1,280 were located in the United States, 1,900 were located in the Philippines, 1,470 were located in Malaysia,
and 1,950 were located in other countries. Of these employees, 4,485 were engaged in manufacturing, 1,075 in
construction projects, 260 in research and development, 355 in sales and marketing, and 430 in general and
administrative services. Although in certain countries we have works councils and statutory employee
representation obligations, our employees are generally not represented by labor unions on an ongoing basis. We
have never experienced a work stoppage, and we believe our relations with our employees to be good.

19

Seasonal Trends and Economic Incentives

Our business is subject to industry-specific seasonal fluctuations including changes in weather patterns and

economic incentives, among others. Sales have historically reflected these seasonal trends with the largest
percentage of total revenues realized during the last two quarters of our fiscal year. The construction of solar
power systems or installation of solar power components and related revenue may decline during cold winter
months. In the United States, many customers make purchasing decisions towards the end of the year in order to
take advantage of tax credits or for other budgetary reasons. In addition, revenues may fluctuate due to the
timing of project sales, construction schedules, and revenue recognition of certain projects, which may
significantly impact the quarterly profile of our results of operations. We may also retain certain development
projects on our balance sheet for longer periods of time than in preceding periods in order to optimize the
economic value we receive at the time of sale in light of market conditions, which can fluctuate after we have
committed to projects. Delays in disposing of projects, or changes in amounts realized on disposition, may lead
to significant fluctuations to the period-over-period profile of our results of operations and our cash available for
working capital needs.

Available Information

We make available our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on

Form 8-K, and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the ‘‘Exchange Act’’) free of charge on our website at www.sunpower.com, as
soon as reasonably practicable after they are electronically filed with or furnished to the SEC. The contents of
our website are not incorporated into, or otherwise to be regarded as part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Copies of such material may be obtained, free of charge, upon written request submitted to our corporate
headquarters: SunPower Corporation, Attn: Investor Relations, 77 Rio Robles, San Jose, California, 95134.
Copies of materials we file with the SEC may also be accessed the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

20

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

Our business is subject to various risks and uncertainties, including those described below and elsewhere

in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations, and
financial condition. Although we believe that we have identified and discussed below certain key risk factors
affecting our business, there may be additional risks and uncertainties that are not currently known to us or
that are not currently believed by us to be material that may also harm our business, results of operations,
and financial condition.

Risks Related to Our Sales Channels

Our operating results are subject to significant fluctuations and are inherently unpredictable.

We do not know whether our revenue will continue to grow, or if it will continue to grow sufficiently to
outpace our expenses, which we also expect to grow. As a result, we may not be profitable on a quarterly or
annual basis. Our revenue and operating results are difficult to predict and have in the past fluctuated
significantly from quarter to quarter. The principal reason for these significant fluctuations in our results is that
we derive a substantial portion of our total revenues from our large commercial customers, consequently:

•

•

•

the amount, timing and mix of sales to our large commercial customers often for a single medium or
large-scale project, may cause large fluctuations in our revenue and other financial results because, at
any given time, a single large-scale project can account for a material portion of our total revenue in a
given quarter;

our inability to monetize our projects as planned, or any delay in obtaining the required government
support or initial payments to begin recognizing revenue under the relevant recognition criteria, and the
corresponding revenue impact, may similarly cause large fluctuations in our revenue and other financial
results;

our ability to monetize projects as planned is also subject to market conditions, including fluctuations
in demand based on the availability of regulatory incentives and other factors, changes in the internal
rate of return expected by customers in light of market conditions, the increasing number of power
plants being constructed or available for sale and competition for financing, which can make both
financing and disposition more challenging and may significantly affect project sales prices;

• market conditions may deteriorate after we have committed to projects, resulting in delays in disposing
of projects, or changes in amounts realized on disposition, which may lead to significant fluctuations in
the period-over-period profile of our results of operations and our cash available for working capital
needs;

•

•

•

•

•

in the event a project is subsequently canceled, abandoned, or is deemed unlikely to occur, we will
charge all prior capital costs as an operating expense in the quarter in which such determination is
made, which could materially adversely affect operating results;

a delayed disposition of a project could require us to recognize a gain on the sale of assets instead of
recognizing revenue;

our agreements with these customers may be canceled if we fail to meet certain product specifications
or materially breach these agreements;

in the event of a customer bankruptcy, our customers may seek to terminate or renegotiate the terms of
current agreements or renewals; and

the failure by any significant customer to pay for orders, whether due to liquidity issues or otherwise,
could materially and adversely affect our results of operations.

Any decrease in revenue from our large commercial customers whether due to a loss or delay of projects or
an inability to collect, could have a significant negative impact on our business. See also ‘‘Item 7A. Quantitative
and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.’’ See also under this section ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales
Channels—Revenues from a limited number of customers and large projects are expected to continue to comprise
a significant portion of our total revenues and any decrease in revenues from those customers or projects,
payment of liquidated damages, or an increase in related expenses, could have a material adverse effect on our
business, results of operations and financial condition.’’

21

Sales to our residential and light commercial customers are similarly susceptible to fluctuations in volumes

and revenue, as well as fluctuations in demand based on the availability of regulatory incentives and other
factors. In addition, demand from our commercial and residential customers may fluctuate based on the perceived
cost-effectiveness of the electricity generated by our solar power systems as compared to conventional energy
sources, such as natural gas and coal (which fuel sources are subject to significant price swings from time to
time), and other non-solar renewable energy sources, such as wind. Declining average selling prices immediately
affect our residential and light commercial sales volumes, and therefore lead to large fluctuations in revenue.

Further, our revenue mix of materials sales versus project sales can fluctuate dramatically from quarter to

quarter, which may adversely affect our margins and financial results in any given period.

Any of the foregoing may cause us to miss our financial guidance for a given period, which could adversely

impact the market price for our common stock and our liquidity.

We base our planned operating expenses in part on our expectations of future revenue and a significant
portion of our expenses is fixed in the short term. If revenue for a particular quarter is lower than we expect, we
likely will be unable to proportionately reduce our operating expenses for that quarter, which would materially
adversely affect our operating results for that quarter. See also under this section, ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales
Channels—Our business could be adversely affected by seasonal trends and construction cycles,’’ ‘‘Risks Related
to Our Sales Channels—The reduction, modification or elimination of government incentives could cause our
revenue to decline and harm our financial results,’’ and ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales Channels—Existing
regulations and policies and changes to these regulations and policies may present technical, regulatory, and
economic barriers to the purchase and use of solar power products, which may significantly reduce demand for
our products and services.’’

Changes in international trade policies, tariffs, or trade disputes could significantly and adversely affect our
business, revenues, margins, results of operations, and cash flows.

On January 23, 2018, the President of the United States issued Proclamation 9693, which approved

recommendations to provide relief to U.S. manufacturers and impose safeguard tariffs on imported solar cells and
modules, based on the investigations, findings, and recommendations of the U.S. International Trade Commission
(the ‘‘International Trade Commission’’) pursuant to a Section 201 petition filed by Suniva, Inc., which Solar
World Americas Inc. later joined, regarding foreign-manufactured photovoltaic (‘‘PV’’) solar cells and modules.
Modules will be subject to a four-year tariff at a rate of 30% in the first year, declining 5% in each of the three
subsequent years, to a final tariff rate of 15% in 2021. Cells are subject to a tariff-rate quota, under which the
first 2.5 GW of cell imports each year will be exempt from tariffs; and cells imported after the 2.5 GW quota
has been reached will be subject to the same 30% tariff as modules in the first year, with the same 5% decline in
each of the three subsequent years. The tariff-free cell quota applies globally, without any allocation by country
or region. The tariffs went into effect on February 7, 2018.

The tariffs could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations. While solar cells and

modules based on interdigitated back contact (‘‘IBC‘‘) technology, like our Maxeon 3, Maxeon 2 and related
products, were granted exclusion from these safeguard tariffs on September 19, 2018, our solar products based
on other technologies continue to be subject to the safeguard tariffs. Although we are actively engaged in efforts
to mitigate the effect of these tariffs, there is no guarantee that these efforts will be successful.

Additionally, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (‘‘USTR’’) initiated an investigation under

Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 into the government of China’s acts, policies, and practices related to
technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation. In notices published June 20, 2018, August 16, 2018,
and September 21, 2018, the USTR imposed additional import duties of up to 25% on certain Chinese products
covered by the Section 301 remedy. These tariffs include certain solar power system components and finished
products, including those purchased from our suppliers for use in our products and used in our business. The
United States and China continue to signal the possibility of taking additional retaliatory measures in response to
actions taken by the other country, which may result in changes to existing trade agreements and terms including
additional tariffs on imports from China or other countries.

In the near term, uncertainty surrounding the implications of the existing tariffs affecting the U.S. solar
market, the escalating trade tensions between China and the United States, and whether specific additional solar
power products may be impacted, is likely to cause market volatility, price fluctuations, supply shortages, and
project delays, any of which could harm our business, and our pursuit of mitigating actions may divert

22

substantial resources from other projects. In addition, the imposition of tariffs is likely to result in a wide range
of impacts to the U.S. solar industry and the global manufacturing market, as well as our business in particular.
Such tariffs could materially increase the price of our solar products and result in significant additional costs to
us, our resellers, and our resellers’ customers, which could cause a significant reduction in demand for our solar
power products and greatly reduce our competitive advantage. With the uncertainties associated with the Section
201 and Section 301 trade cases, events and changes in circumstances indicated that the carrying values of our
long-lived assets associated with our manufacturing operations might not be recoverable.

The execution of our growth strategy is dependent upon the continued availability of third-party financing
arrangements for our solar power plants, our residential lease program, and our customers, and is affected by
general economic conditions and other factors.

Our growth strategy depends on third-party financing arrangements. We often require project financing for

development and construction of our solar power plant projects, which require significant investments before the
equity is later sold to investors. Many purchasers of our systems projects have entered into third-party
arrangements to finance their systems over an extended period of time, while many end-customers have chosen
to purchase solar electricity under a power purchase agreement (‘‘PPA‘‘) with an investor or financing company
that purchases the system from us or our authorized dealers. We often execute PPAs directly with the end-user,
with the expectation that we will later assign the PPA to a financier. Under such arrangements, the financier
separately contracts with us to acquire and build the solar power system, and then sells the electricity to the
end-user under the assigned PPA. When executing PPAs with end-users, we seek to mitigate the risk that
financing will not be available for the project by allowing termination of the PPA in such event without penalty.
However, we may not always be successful in negotiating for penalty-free termination rights for failure to obtain
financing, and certain end-users have required substantial financial penalties in exchange for such rights. These
structured finance arrangements are complex and may not be feasible in many situations.

Global economic conditions, including conditions that may make it more difficult or expensive for us to
access credit and liquidity, could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations. Credit
markets are unpredictable, and if they become more challenging, we may be unable to obtain project financing
for our projects, customers may be unable or unwilling to finance the cost of our products, we may have
difficulties in reaching agreements with financiers to finance the construction of our solar power systems, or the
parties that have historically provided this financing may cease to do so, or only do so on terms that are
substantially less favorable for us or our customers, any of which could materially and adversely affect our
revenue and growth in both segments of our business. Our plans to continue to grow our residential lease
program may be delayed if credit conditions prevent us from obtaining or maintaining arrangements to finance
the program. We are actively arranging additional third-party financing for our residential lease program;
however, if we encounter challenging credit markets, we may be unable to arrange additional financing partners
for our residential lease program in future periods, which could have a negative impact on our sales. In the event
we enter into a material number of additional leases without obtaining corresponding third-party financing, our
cash, working capital and financial results could be negatively affected. In addition, a rise in interest rates would
likely increase our customers’ cost of financing or leasing our products and could reduce their profits and
expected returns on investment in our products. The general reduction in available credit to would-be borrowers
or lessees, worldwide economic uncertainty, and the condition of worldwide housing markets could delay or
reduce our sales of products to new homebuilders and authorized resellers. For more information, see ‘‘Item 8.
Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements—Note 7. Leasing.’’

The availability of financing depends on many factors, including market conditions, the demand for and

supply of solar projects, and resulting risks of refinancing or disposing of such projects. It also depends in part
on government incentives, such as tax incentives. In the United States, with the expiration of the Treasury Grant
under Section 1603 of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act program, we have needed to identify
interested financiers with sufficient taxable income to monetize the tax incentives created by our solar systems.
In the long term, as we look toward markets not supported (or supported less) by government incentives, we will
continue to need to identify financiers willing to finance residential solar systems without such incentives. Our
failure to effectively do so could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations. In
addition, with the recent passage of comprehensive reform of the Code, the impact of revisions to various
industry-specific tax incentives, such as accelerated depreciation, and an overall reduction in corporate tax rates
may lead to changes in the market and availability of tax equity investors.

23

The lack of project financing, due to tighter credit markets or other reasons, could delay the development
and construction of our solar power plant projects, thus reducing our revenues from the sale of such projects. We
may in some cases seek to pursue partnership arrangements with financing entities to assist residential and other
customers to obtain financing for the purchase or lease of our systems, which would expose us to credit or other
risks. We face competition for financing partners and if we are unable to continue to offer a competitive
investment profile, we may lose access to financing partners or they may offer financing on less favorable terms
than our competitors, which could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

If we fail to successfully execute our cost reduction roadmap, or fail to develop and introduce new and
enhanced products and services, we may be unable to compete effectively, and our ability to generate revenues
and profits would suffer.

Our solar panels are currently competitive in the market compared with lower cost conventional solar cells,

such as thin-film, due to our products’ higher efficiency, among other things. Given the general downward
pressure on prices for solar panels driven by increasing supply and technological change, a principal component
of our business strategy is reducing our costs to manufacture our products to remain competitive. We also focus
on standardizing our products with the goal of driving down installation costs. If our competitors are able to
drive down their manufacturing and installation costs or increase the efficiency of their products faster than we
can, or if competitor products are exempted from tariffs and quotas and ours are not, our products may become
less competitive even when adjusted for efficiency. Further, if raw materials costs and other third-party
component costs were to increase, we may not meet our cost reduction targets. If we cannot effectively execute
our cost reduction roadmap, our competitive position will suffer, and we could lose market share and our margins
would be adversely affected as we face downward pricing pressure.

The solar power market is characterized by continually changing technology and improving features, such as

increased efficiency, higher power output and enhanced aesthetics. Technologies developed by our direct
competitors, including thin-film solar panels, concentrating solar cells, solar thermal electric and other solar
technologies, may provide energy at lower costs than our products. We also face competition in some markets
from other energy generation sources, including conventional fossil fuels, wind, biomass, and hydro. In addition,
other companies could potentially develop a highly reliable renewable energy system that mitigates the
intermittent energy production drawback of many renewable energy systems. Companies could also offer other
value-added improvements from the perspective of utilities and other system owners, in which case such
companies could compete with us even if the cost of electricity associated with any such new system is higher
than that of our systems. We also compete with traditional utilities that supply energy to our potential customers.
Such utilities have greater financial, technical, operational and other resources than we do. If electricity rates
decrease and our products become less competitive by comparison, our operating results and financial condition
will be adversely affected.

Our failure to further refine our technology, reduce cost in our manufacturing process, and develop and
introduce new solar power products could cause our products or our manufacturing facilities to become less
competitive or obsolete, which could reduce our market share, cause our sales to decline, and cause the
impairment of our assets. This risk requires us to continuously develop new solar power products and
enhancements for existing solar power products to keep pace with evolving industry standards, competitive
pricing and changing customer preferences, expectations, and requirements. It is difficult to successfully predict
the products and services our customers will demand. If we cannot continually improve the efficiency and prove
the reliability of our solar panels as compared with those of our competitors, our pricing will become less
competitive, we could lose market share and our margins would be adversely affected.

As we introduce new or enhanced products or integrate new technology and components into our products,
we will face risks relating to such transitions including, among other things, the incurrence of high fixed costs,
technical challenges, acceptance of products by our customers, disruption in customers’ ordering patterns,
insufficient supplies of new products to meet customers’ demand, possible product and technology defects arising
from the integration of new technology and a potentially different sales and support environment relating to any
new technology. Our failure to manage the transition to newer products or the integration of newer technology
and components into our products could adversely affect our business’s operating results and financial condition.
See also under this section, ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales Channels—Changes in international trade policies,
tariffs, or trade disputes could significantly and adversely affect our business, revenues, margins, results of
operations, and cash flows.’’

24

The increase in the global supply of solar cells and panels, and increasing competition, may cause substantial
downward pressure on the prices of such products and cause us to lose sales or market share, resulting in
lower revenues, earnings, and cash flows.

Global solar cell and panel production capacity has been materially increasing overall, and solar cell and
solar panel manufacturers currently have excess capacity, particularly in China. Excess capacity and industry
competition have resulted in the past, and may continue to result, in substantial downward pressure on the price
of solar cells and panels, including SunPower products. Intensifying competition could also cause us to lose sales
or market share. Such price reductions or loss of sales or market share could have a negative impact on our
revenue and earnings, and could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and cash flows. In
addition, our internal pricing forecasts may not be accurate in such a market environment, which could cause our
financial results to be different than forecasted. Uncertainty with respect to Chinese government policies,
including subsidies or other incentives for solar projects, may cause increased, decreased, or volatile supply
and/or demand for solar products, which could negatively impact our revenue and earnings. Finally, the
imposition by the U.S. of tariffs and quotas could materially adversely affect our ability to compete with other
suppliers and developers in the U.S. market. See also under this section, ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales
Channels—If we fail to successfully execute our cost reduction roadmap, or fail to develop and introduce new
and enhanced products and services, we may be unable to compete effectively, and our ability to generate
revenues and profits would suffer,’’ and ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales Channels—Changes in international trade
policies, tariffs, or trade disputes could significantly and adversely affect our business, revenues, margins, results
of operations, and cash flows.’’

The reduction, modification or elimination of government incentives could cause our revenue to decline and
harm our financial results.

The market for on-grid applications, where solar power is used to supplement a customer’s electricity
purchased from the utility network or sold to a utility under tariff, depends in large part on the availability and
size of government mandates and economic incentives because, at present, the cost of solar power generally
exceeds retail electric rates in many locations and wholesale peak power rates in some locations. Incentives and
mandates vary by geographic market. Various government bodies in most of the countries where we do business
have provided incentives in the form of feed-in tariffs, rebates, and tax credits and other incentives and
mandates, such as renewable portfolio standards and net metering, to end-users, distributors, system integrators
and manufacturers of solar power products to promote the use of solar energy in on-grid applications and to
reduce dependency on other forms of energy. These various forms of support for solar power are subject to
change (as, for example, occurred in 2015 with Nevada’s decision to change net energy metering; and in
2017 with California’s adoption of new time-of-use rates that reduced the price paid to solar system owners for
mid-day electricity production), and are expected in the longer term to decline. Even changes that may be viewed
as positive (such as the extension at the end of 2015 of U.S. tax credits related to solar power) can have negative
effects if they result, for example, in delaying purchases that otherwise might have been made before expiration
or scheduled reductions in such credits. Governmental decisions regarding the provision of economic incentives
often depend on political and economic factors that we cannot predict and that are beyond our control. The
reduction, modification or elimination of grid access, government mandates or economic incentives in one or
more of our customer markets would materially and adversely affect the growth of such markets or result in
increased price competition, either of which could cause our revenue to decline and materially adversely affect
our financial results.

Existing regulations and policies and changes to these regulations and policies may present technical,
regulatory, and economic barriers to the purchase and use of solar power products, which may significantly
reduce demand for our products and services.

The market for electric generation products is heavily influenced by federal, state and local government
laws, regulations and policies concerning the electric utility industry in the United States and abroad, as well as
policies promulgated by electric utilities. These regulations and policies often relate to electricity pricing and
technical interconnection of customer-owned electricity generation, and changes that make solar power less
competitive with other power sources could deter investment in the research and development of alternative
energy sources as well as customer purchases of solar power technology, which could in turn result in a
significant reduction in the demand for our solar power products. The market for electric generation equipment is
also influenced by trade and local content laws, regulations and policies that can discourage growth and

25

competition in the solar industry and create economic barriers to the purchase of solar power products, thus
reducing demand for our solar products. In addition, on-grid applications depend on access to the grid, which is
also regulated by government entities. We anticipate that our solar power products and their installation will
continue to be subject to oversight and regulation in accordance with federal, state, local and foreign regulations
relating to construction, safety, environmental protection, utility interconnection and metering, trade, and related
matters. It is difficult to track the requirements of individual states or local jurisdictions and design equipment to
comply with the varying standards. In addition, the U.S., European Union and Chinese governments, among
others, have imposed tariffs or are in the process of evaluating the imposition of tariffs on solar panels, solar
cells, polysilicon, and potentially other components. These and any other tariffs or similar taxes or duties may
increase the price of our solar products and adversely affect our cost reduction roadmap, which could harm our
results of operations and financial condition. Any new regulations or policies pertaining to our solar power
products may result in significant additional expenses to us, our resellers and our resellers’ customers, which
could cause a significant reduction in demand for our solar power products. See also under this section, ‘‘Risks
Related to Our Sales Channels—Changes in international trade policies, tariffs, or trade disputes could
significantly and adversely affect our business, revenues, margins, results of operations, and cash flows.’’

We may not achieve some or all of the expected benefits of our restructuring plans and our restructuring may
adversely affect our business.

We announced a restructuring plan in February 2018 to reduce operating expenses and cost of revenue overhead
in light of the known shorter-term impact of U.S. tariffs imposed on PV solar cells and modules pursuant to Section
201 of the Trade Act of 1974 and our broader initiatives to control costs and improve cash flow. While we expect to
complete the plan in 2019, additional actions may be costly and disruptive to our business, and we may not be able to
obtain the cost savings and benefits that were initially anticipated in connection with our restructuring. Additionally,
we may experience a loss of continuity, loss of accumulated knowledge, or inefficiency during transitional periods
associated with our restructuring. Reorganization and restructuring can require a significant amount of management
and other employees’ time and focus, which may divert attention from operating and growing our business. If we fail
to achieve some or all of the expected benefits of restructuring, it could have a material adverse effect on our
competitive position, business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. For more information about
our restructuring plan, see ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to Consolidated Financial
Statements—Note 9. Restructuring.’’

As owners and operators of solar power systems that deliver electricity to the grid, certain of our affiliated
entities may be considered public utilities for purposes of the Federal Power Act, as amended (the ‘‘FPA’’),
and are subject to regulation by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (‘‘FERC’’), as well as various
local and state regulatory bodies.

Although we are not directly subject to FERC regulation under the FPA, we are considered to be a ‘‘holding
company’’ for purposes of Section 203 of the FPA, which regulates certain transactions involving public utilities,
and such regulation could adversely affect our ability to grow the business through acquisitions. Likewise,
investors seeking to acquire our public utility subsidiaries or acquire ownership interests in their securities may
require prior FERC approval to do so. Such approval could result in transaction delays or uncertainties.

Public utilities under the FPA are required to obtain FERC acceptance of their rate schedules for wholesale

sales of electricity and to comply with various regulations. FERC may grant our affiliated entities the authority to
sell electricity at market-based rates and may also grant them certain regulatory waivers, such as waivers from
compliance with FERC’s accounting regulations. These FERC orders reserve the right to revoke or revise
market-based sales authority if FERC subsequently determines that our affiliated entities can exercise market
power in the sale of generation products, the provision of transmission services, or if it finds that any of the
entities can create barriers to entry by competitors. In addition, if the entities fail to comply with certain
reporting obligations, FERC may revoke their power sales tariffs. Finally, if the entities were deemed to have
engaged in manipulative or deceptive practices concerning their power sales transactions, they would be subject
to potential fines, disgorgement of profits, and/or suspension or revocation of their market-based rate authority. If
our affiliated entities were to lose their market-based rate authority, such companies would be required to obtain
FERC’s acceptance of a cost-of-service rate schedule and could become subject to the accounting,
record-keeping, and reporting requirements that are imposed on utilities with cost-based rate schedules, which
would impose cost and compliance burdens on us and have an adverse effect on our results of operations. In

26

addition to the risks described above, we may be subject to additional regulatory regimes at state or foreign
levels to the extent we own and operate solar power systems in such jurisdictions.

As our sales to residential customers have grown, we have increasingly become subject to substantial
financing and consumer protection laws and regulations.

As we continue to seek to expand our retail customer base, our activities with customers – and in particular,
our financing activities with our residential customers – are subject to consumer protection laws that may not be
applicable to our commercial and power plant businesses, such as federal truth-in-lending, consumer leasing, and
equal credit opportunity laws and regulations, as well as state and local finance laws and regulations. Claims
arising out of actual or alleged violations of law may be asserted against us by individuals or governmental
entities and may expose us to significant damages or other penalties, including fines. In addition, our affiliations
with third-party dealers may subject us to alleged liability in connection with actual or alleged violations of law
by such dealers, whether or not actually attributable to us, which may expose us to significant damages and
penalties, and we may incur substantial expenses in defending against legal actions related to third-party dealers,
whether or not we are ultimately found liable.

We may incur unexpected warranty and product liability claims that could materially and adversely affect our
financial condition and results of operations.

Our current standard product warranty for our solar panels and their components includes a 25-year

warranty period for defects in materials and workmanship and for greater than promised declines in power
performance. We believe our warranty offering is in line with industry practice. This long warranty period creates
a risk of extensive warranty claims long after we have shipped product and recognized revenue. We perform
accelerated life cycle testing that exposes our products to extreme stress and climate conditions in both
environmental simulation chambers and in actual field deployments in order to highlight potential failures that
could occur over the 25-year warranty period. We also employ measurement tools and algorithms intended to
help us assess actual and expected performance; these attempt to compare actual performance against an
expected performance baseline that is intended to account for many factors (like weather) that can affect
performance. Although we conduct accelerated testing of our solar panels and components, they have not and
cannot be tested in an environment that exactly simulates the 25-year warranty period and it is difficult to test for
all conditions that may occur in the field. Further, there can be no assurance that our efforts to accurately
measure and predict panel and component performance will be successful. We have sold products under our
warranties since the early 2000s and have therefore not experienced the full warranty cycle.

In our project installations, our current standard warranty for our solar power systems differs by geography

and end-customer application and usually includes a limited warranty of 10 years for defects in workmanship,
after which the customer may typically extend the period covered by its warranty for an additional fee. We also
typically provide a system output performance warranty, separate from our standard solar panel product warranty,
to customers that have subscribed to our post-installation O&M services. The long warranty period and nature of
the warranties create a risk of extensive warranty claims long after we have completed a project and recognized
revenues. Warranty and product liability claims may also result from defects or quality issues in certain
technology and components (whether manufactured by us or third parties) that we incorporate into our solar
power systems, such as solar cells, panels, inverters, and microinverters, over which we may have little or no
control. See also under this section ‘‘Risks Related to Our Supply Chain—We will continue to be dependent on a
limited number of third-party suppliers for certain raw materials and components for our products, which could
prevent us from delivering our products to our customers within required time frames and could in turn result in
sales and installation delays, cancellations, penalty payments and loss of market share.’’ While we generally pass
through to our customers the manufacturer warranties we receive from our suppliers, in some circumstances, we
may be responsible for repairing or replacing defective parts during our warranty period, often including those
covered by manufacturers’ warranties, or incur other non-warranty costs. If a manufacturer disputes or otherwise
fails to honor its warranty obligations, we may be required to incur substantial costs before we are compensated,
if at all, by the manufacturer. Furthermore, our warranties may exceed the period of any warranties from our
suppliers covering components, such as third-party solar cells, third-party panels and third-party inverters,
included in our systems. In addition, manufacturer warranties may not fully compensate us for losses associated
with third-party claims caused by defects or quality issues in their products. For example, most manufacturer
warranties exclude certain losses that may result from a system component’s failure or defect, such as the cost of

27

de-installation, re-installation, shipping, lost electricity, lost renewable energy credits or other solar incentives,
personal injury, property damage, and other losses. In certain cases, the direct warranty coverage we provide to
our customers, and therefore our financial exposure, may exceed our recourse available against cell, panel or
other manufacturers for defects in their products. In addition, in the event we seek recourse through warranties,
we will also be dependent on the creditworthiness and continued existence of the suppliers to our business. In the
past, certain of our suppliers have entered bankruptcy and our likelihood of a successful warranty claim against
such suppliers is minimal.

Increases in the defect rate of SunPower or third-party products, including components, could cause us to
increase the amount of warranty reserves and have a corresponding material, negative impact on our results of
operations. Further, potential future product or component failures could cause us to incur substantial expense to
repair or replace defective products or components, and we have agreed in some circumstances to indemnify our
customers and our distributors against liability from some defects in our solar products. A successful
indemnification claim against us could require us to make significant damage payments. Repair and replacement
costs, as well as successful indemnification claims, could materially and negatively impact our financial
condition and results of operations.

Like other retailers, distributors and manufacturers of products that are used by customers, we face an

inherent risk of exposure to product liability claims in the event that the use of the solar power products into
which solar cells, solar panels, and microinverters are incorporated results in injury, property damage or other
damages. We may be subject to warranty and product liability claims in the event that our solar power systems
fail to perform as expected or if a failure of our solar power systems or any component thereof results, or is
alleged to result, in bodily injury, property damage or other damages. Since our solar power products are
electricity-producing devices, it is possible that our systems could result in injury, whether by product
malfunctions, defects, improper installation or other causes. In addition, since we only began selling our solar
cells and solar panels in the early 2000s and the products we are developing incorporate new technologies and
use new installation methods, we cannot predict the extent to which product liability claims may be brought
against us in the future or the effect of any resulting negative publicity on our business. Moreover, we may not
have adequate resources to satisfy a successful claim against us. We rely on our general liability insurance to
cover product liability claims. A successful warranty or product liability claim against us that is not covered by
insurance or is in excess of our available insurance limits could require us to make significant payments of
damages. In addition, quality issues can have various other ramifications, including delays in the recognition of
revenue, loss of revenue, loss of future sales opportunities, increased costs associated with repairing or replacing
products, and a negative impact on our goodwill and reputation, any of which could adversely affect our
business, operating results and financial condition.

We do not typically maintain long-term agreements with our customers and accordingly we could lose
customers without warning, which could adversely affect our operating results.

Our product sales to residential dealers and components customers typically are not made under long-term
agreements. We often contract to construct or sell large projects with no assurance of repeat business from the
same customers in the future. Although cancellations of our purchase orders to date have been infrequent, our
customers may cancel or reschedule purchase orders with us on relatively short notice. Cancellations or
rescheduling of customer orders could result in the delay or loss of anticipated sales without allowing us
sufficient time to reduce, or delay the incurrence of, our corresponding inventory and operating expenses. In
addition, changes in forecasts or the timing of orders from these or other customers expose us to the risks of
inventory shortages or excess inventory. These circumstances, in addition to the completion and non-repetition of
large projects, declining average selling prices, changes in the relative mix of sales of solar equipment versus
solar project installations, and the fact that our supply agreements are generally long-term in nature and many of
our other operating costs are fixed, could cause our operating results to fluctuate and may result in a material
adverse effect in our business, results of operations, and financial condition. In addition, since we rely partly on
our network of international dealers for marketing and other promotional programs, if our dealers fail to perform
up to our standards, our operating results could be adversely affected.

Our business could be adversely affected by seasonal trends and construction cycles.

Our business is subject to significant industry-specific seasonal fluctuations. Our sales have historically
reflected these seasonal trends, with the largest percentage of our total revenues realized during the second half
of each fiscal year. There are various reasons for this seasonality, mostly related to economic incentives and

28

weather patterns. For example, in European countries with feed-in tariffs, the construction of solar power systems
may be concentrated during the second half of the calendar year, largely due to the annual reduction of the
applicable minimum feed-in tariff and the fact that the coldest winter months in the Northern Hemisphere are
January through March. In the United States, many customers make purchasing decisions towards the end of the
year in order to take advantage of tax credits. In addition, sales in the new home development market are often
tied to construction market demands, which tend to follow national trends in construction, including declining
sales during cold weather months.

The competitive environment in which we operate often requires us to undertake customer obligations, which
may turn out to be costlier than anticipated and, in turn, materially and adversely affect our business, results
of operations and financial condition.

We are often required, as a condition of financing or at the request of our end customer, to undertake certain

obligations such as:

•

•

•

•

•

•

system output performance warranties;

system maintenance;

penalty payments or customer termination rights if the system we are constructing is not commissioned
within specified timeframes or other construction milestones are not achieved;

guarantees of certain minimum residual value of the system at specified future dates;

system put-rights whereby we could be required to buy back a customer’s system at fair value on a
future date if certain minimum performance thresholds are not met; and

indemnification against losses customers may suffer as a result of reductions in benefits received under
the solar commercial investment tax credit (‘‘ITC’’) under Section 48(c) of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986, as amended (the ‘‘Code‘‘), and Treasury grant programs under Section 1603 of the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act (the ‘‘Cash Grant’’).

Such financing arrangements and customer obligations involve complex accounting analyses and judgments
regarding the timing of revenue and expense recognition, and in certain situations these factors may require us to
defer revenue or profit recognition until projects are completed or until contingencies are resolved, which could
adversely affect our revenues and profits in a particular period.

Risks Related to Our Liquidity

We may be unable to generate sufficient cash flows or obtain access to external financing necessary to fund
our operations and make adequate capital investments, as planned due to the general economic environment
and the continued market pressure driving down the average selling prices of our solar power products,
among other factors.

To develop new products, including our Next Generation Technology (‘‘NGT’’ or Maxeon 5), support future

growth, achieve operating efficiencies, and maintain product quality, we must make significant capital
investments in manufacturing technology, facilities and capital equipment, research and development, and product
and process technology. Our manufacturing and assembly activities have required and will continue to require
significant investment of capital and substantial engineering expenditures. In addition, we expect to invest a
significant amount of capital to develop solar power systems for sale to customers. Developing and constructing
solar power projects requires significant time and substantial initial investment. The delayed disposition of such
projects, or the inability to realize the full anticipated value of such projects on disposition, could have a
negative impact on our liquidity. See also under this section, ‘‘Risks Related to Our Operations-Project
development or construction activities may not be successful and we may make significant investments without
first obtaining project financing, which could increase our costs and impair our ability to recover our
investments’’ and ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales Channels-Revenues from a limited number of customers and large
projects are expected to continue to comprise a significant portion of our total revenues and any decrease in
revenues from those customers or projects, payment of liquidated damages, or an increase in related expenses,
could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition,’’ and
‘‘Changes in international trade policies, tariffs, or trade disputes could significantly and adversely affect our
business, revenues, margins, results of operations, and cash flows.’’

29

Our capital expenditures and use of working capital may be greater than we anticipate if sales and
associated receipt of cash proceeds are delayed, or if we decide to accelerate increases in our manufacturing
capacity internally or through capital contributions to joint ventures. As we ramp our Maxeon 5 technology and
begin volume production in 2019, we may pursue scale-up partnerships or other financing options to fund the
NGT expansion. In addition, we could in the future make additional investments in certain of our joint ventures
or could guarantee certain financial obligations of our joint ventures, which could reduce our cash flows, increase
our indebtedness and expose us to the credit risk of our joint venture partners. In addition, if our financial results
or operating plans deviate from our current assumptions, we may not have sufficient resources to support our
business plan. See also under this section, ‘‘Risks Related to Our Liquidity—We have a significant amount of
debt outstanding. Our substantial indebtedness and other contractual commitments could adversely affect our
business, financial condition and results of operations, as well as our ability to meet our payment obligations
under our debentures and our other debt.’’

Certain of our customers also require performance bonds issued by a bonding agency, or bank guarantees or

letters of credit issued by financial institutions, which are returned to us upon satisfaction of contractual
requirements. If there is a contractual dispute with the customer, the customer may withhold the security or make
a draw under the security, which could have an adverse impact on our liquidity. Our uncollateralized letter of
credit facility with Deutsche Bank, as of December 30, 2018, had an outstanding amount of $18.1 million. Our
bilateral letter of credit agreements with The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. (‘‘BTMU’’), Credit Agricole
Corporate and Investment Bank (‘‘Credit Agricole’’), and HSBC Bank USA, National Association had an
outstanding amount of $36.3 million as of December 30, 2018. Any draws under these uncollateralized facilities
would require us to immediately reimburse the bank for the drawn amount. A default under the guaranteed letter
of credit facility, or the acceleration of our other indebtedness greater than $25.0 million, could cause Total S.A.
to declare all amounts due and payable to Total S.A. and direct the bank to cease issuing additional letters of
credit on our behalf, which could have a material adverse effect on our operations.

In addition, the Revolver will mature on August 26, 2019 by its terms, and we may be unable to find
adequate credit support in replacement, on acceptable terms or at all. In such case, our ability to obtain adequate
amounts of debt financing, through our letter of credit facility or otherwise, may be harmed.

We manage our working capital requirements and fund our committed capital expenditures, including the

development and construction of our planned solar power projects, through our current cash and cash
equivalents, cash generated from operations, and funds available under our revolving credit facilities with Credit
Agricole and other construction financing providers. As of December 30, 2018, $300.0 million remained undrawn
under our revolving credit facility with Credit Agricole. We have the ability to borrow up to $95.0 million under
this revolving credit facility pursuant to the Letter Agreement executed by us and Total S.A. on May 8, 2017
(see ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements—Note 2. Transactions with Total and Total S.A.’’ in the Notes to the
Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K). As of December 30, 2018, we had
$75.0 million in additional borrowing capacity under our other limited recourse construction financing facilities.

The lenders under our credit facilities and holders of our debentures may also require us to repay our

indebtedness to them in the event that our obligations under other indebtedness or contracts in excess of the
applicable threshold amount, are accelerated and we fail to discharge such obligations. If our capital resources
are insufficient to satisfy our liquidity requirements, for example, due to cross acceleration of indebtedness, we
may seek to sell additional equity investments or debt securities or obtain other debt financings. Market
conditions, however, could limit our ability to raise capital by issuing new equity or debt securities on acceptable
terms, and lenders may be unwilling to lend funds on acceptable terms. The sale of additional equity investments
or convertible debt securities may result in additional dilution to our stockholders. Additional debt would result
in increased expenses and could impose new restrictive covenants that may be different from those restrictions
contained in the covenants under certain of our current debt agreements and debentures. Financing arrangements,
including project financing for our solar power projects and letters of credit facilities, may not be available to us,
or may not be available in amounts or on terms acceptable to us. If additional financing is not available, we may
be forced to seek to sell assets or reduce or delay capital investments, any of which could adversely affect our
business, results of operations and financial condition.

If we cannot generate sufficient cash flows, find other sources of capital to fund our operations and projects,
make adequate capital investments to remain technologically and price competitive, or provide bonding or letters
of credit required by our projects, we may need to sell additional equity investments or debt securities, or obtain

30

other debt financings. If adequate funds from these or and other sources are not available on acceptable terms,
our ability to fund our operations, develop and construct solar power projects, develop and expand our
manufacturing operations and distribution network, maintain our research and development efforts, provide
collateral for our projects, meet our debt service obligations, or otherwise respond to competitive pressures would
be significantly impaired. Our inability to do any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our
business, results of operations and financial condition.

We have a significant amount of debt outstanding. Our substantial indebtedness and other contractual
commitments could adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations, as well as our
ability to meet our payment obligations under the debentures and our other debt.

We currently have a significant amount of debt and debt service requirements. As of December 30, 2018,

we had approximately $0.9 billion of outstanding debt.

This level of debt could have material consequences on our future operations, including:
• making it more difficult for us to meet our payment and other obligations under the debentures and our

other outstanding debt;

•

•

•

•

•

resulting in an event of default if we fail to comply with the financial and other restrictive covenants
contained in our debt agreements (with certain covenants becoming more restrictive over time), which
event of default could result in all or a significant portion of our debt becoming immediately due and
payable;

reducing the availability of our cash flows to fund working capital, capital expenditures, project
development, acquisitions and other general corporate purposes, and limiting our ability to obtain
additional financing for these purposes;

subjecting us to the risk of increased sensitivity to interest rate increases on our indebtedness with
variable interest rates, including borrowings under our credit agreement with Credit Agricole;

limiting our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, and increasing our vulnerability to, changes in
our business, the industry in which we operate and the general economy; and

placing us at a competitive disadvantage compared with our competitors that have less debt or have
lower leverage ratios.

In the event, expected or unexpected, that any of our joint ventures is consolidated with our financial

statements, such consolidation could significantly increase our indebtedness.

Our ability to meet our payment and other obligations under our debt instruments depends on our ability to

generate significant cash flows, which, to some extent, is subject to general economic, financial, competitive,
legislative and regulatory factors as well as other factors that are beyond our control. We cannot assure you that
our business will generate cash flows from operations, or that future borrowings will be available to us under our
existing or any future credit facilities or otherwise, in an amount sufficient to enable us to meet our payment
obligations under our debentures and our other debt and to fund other liquidity needs. If we are unable to
generate sufficient cash flows to service our debt obligations, we may need to refinance or restructure our debt,
including our debentures, sell assets, reduce or delay capital investments, or seek to raise additional capital.
There can be no assurance that we will be successful in any sale of assets, refinancing, or restructuring effort.
See also under this section, ‘‘Risks Related to Our Operations—We may in the future be required to consolidate
the assets, liabilities, and financial results of certain of our existing or future joint ventures, which could have an
adverse impact on our financial position, gross margin and operating results’’, ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales
Channels—Changes in international trade policies, tariffs, or trade disputes could significantly and adversely
affect our business, revenues, margins, results of operations, and cash flows,‘‘ and ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements
and Supplementary Data—Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements—Note 1. Organization and Summary of
Significant Accounting Policies—Liquidity.’’

Although we are currently in compliance with the covenants contained in our debt agreements, we cannot
assure you that we will be able to remain in compliance with such covenants in the future. We may not be able
to cure future violations or obtain waivers from our creditors in order to avoid a default. An event of default
under any of our debt agreements could have a material adverse effect on our liquidity, financial condition, and
results of operations.

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Our current tax holidays in the Philippines and Malaysia will expire within the next several years, and other
related international tax developments could adversely affect our results.

We benefit from income tax holiday incentives in the Philippines in accordance with our subsidiary’s
registration with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (‘‘PEZA’’), which provide that we pay no income tax
in the Philippines for those operations subject to the ruling (through July 2019). Tax savings associated with the
Philippines tax holidays were approximately $3.4 million, $5.6 million, and $10.0 million in fiscal 2018, 2017,
and 2016, respectively, which provided a diluted net income (loss) per share benefit of $0.02, $0.04, and $0.07 in
fiscal 2018, 2017, and 2016, respectively.

Our income tax holidays were granted as manufacturing lines were placed in service. We plan to apply for
extensions and renewals upon expiration; however, while we expect all approvals to be granted, we can offer no
assurance that they will be. We believe that if our Philippine tax holidays are not extended or renewed, (a) gross
income attributable to activities covered by our PEZA registrations will be taxed at a 5% preferential rate, and
(b) our Philippine net income attributable to all other activities will be taxed at the statutory Philippine corporate
income tax rate, currently 30%. An increase in our tax liability could materially and adversely affect our
business, financial condition and results of operations.

We continued to qualify for the auxiliary company status in Switzerland where we sell our solar power

products. The auxiliary company status entitles us to a tax rate of 11.5% in Switzerland, reduced from
approximately 24.2%. Tax savings associated with this ruling were approximately $1.8 million, $2.4 million, and
$1.9 million in fiscal 2018, 2017, and 2016, respectively, which provided a diluted net income (loss) per share
benefit of $0.01, $0.02, and $0.01 in fiscal 2018, 2017, and 2016, respectively.

We also benefit from a tax holiday granted by the Malaysian government, subject to certain hiring, capital
spending, and manufacturing requirements. We have successfully negotiated with the Malaysian government to
modify the requirements of the tax holiday; we are currently in compliance with the modified requirements of
the tax holiday. We received approval from the Malaysian government of the extension of our tax holiday for a
second five-year term (through June 30, 2021). Tax savings associated with the Malaysia tax holiday were
approximately $7.6 million, $6.8 million, and $2.0 million in fiscal 2018, 2017, and 2016 respectively, which
provided a diluted net income (loss) per share benefit of $0.05, $0.05, and $0.01 in fiscal 2018, 2017, and
2016 respectively. Although we were granted the extension, should we fail to meet certain requirements in the
future and are unable to renegotiate the tax ruling further, we could be retroactively and prospectively subject to
statutory tax rates and repayment of certain incentives which could negatively impact our business.

More generally, with the finalization of specific actions contained within the Organization for Economic

Development and Cooperation’s (‘‘OECD’’) Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (‘‘BEPS’’) study (‘‘Actions’’),
many OECD countries have acknowledged their intent to implement the Actions and update their local tax
regulations. Among the considerations required by the Actions is the need for appropriate local business
operational substance to justify any locally granted tax incentives, such as those described above, and that the
incentives are not determined to constitute ‘‘state aid’’ which would invalidate the incentive. If we fail to
maintain sufficient operational substance or if the countries determine the incentive regimes do not conform with
the BEPS regulations being considered for implementation, adverse material economic impacts may result.

A change in our effective tax rate could have a significant adverse impact on our business, and an adverse
outcome resulting from examination of our income or other tax returns could adversely affect our results.

A number of factors may adversely affect our future effective tax rates, such as the jurisdictions in which

our profits are determined to be earned and taxed; changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and
liabilities; adjustments to estimated taxes upon finalization of various tax returns; adjustments to our
interpretation of transfer pricing standards; changes in available tax credits, grants and other incentives; changes
in stock-based compensation expense; the availability of loss or credit carryforwards to offset taxable income;
changes in tax laws or the interpretation of such tax laws (for example U.S. and international tax reform);
changes in U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP); expiration or the inability to renew tax
rulings or tax holiday incentives. A change in our effective tax rate due to any of these factors may adversely
affect our future results from operations.

On December 22, 2017, the U.S. enacted significant changes to U.S. tax law following the passage and
signing of H.R.1, ‘‘An Act to Provide for Reconciliation Pursuant to Titles II and V of the Concurrent Resolution
on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2018‘‘ (previously known as ‘‘The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act‘‘ and, as enacted, the

32

‘‘Tax Act‘‘). The Tax Act reduced the U.S. federal corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%, required companies to
pay a one-time transition tax on earnings of certain foreign subsidiaries that were previously tax deferred and
created new taxes on certain foreign sourced earnings. The U.S. Department of Treasury has broad authority to
issue regulations and interpretive guidance that may significantly impact how we will apply the law and impact
our results of operations in the period issued. The Tax Act required complex computations not previously
provided in U.S. tax law. As such, the application of accounting guidance for such items was previously
uncertain. As of December 30, 2018, we have completed our ‘‘Tax Act‘‘ analysis and it did not have any impact
to our expectations of actual cash payments for income tax in the foreseeable future.

Changes made to the Code by the Tax Act — in particular, the reduction of the U.S. federal corporate tax
rate from 35% to 21% — could affect the cost of capital provided by third-party investors for our projects. In
particular, the reduction of the U.S. federal corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% decreases the value of
depreciation to potential tax equity investors who may, as a result, require higher cash flow from solar project
customers, and investors in SunPower solar energy projects may pay less for the project, in each case to
compensate for the lower tax benefit value.

Significant judgment is required to determine the recognition and measurement attributes prescribed in the
accounting guidance for uncertainty in income taxes. The accounting guidance for uncertainty in income taxes
applies to all income tax positions, including the potential recovery of previously paid taxes, which if settled
unfavorably could adversely affect our provision for income taxes. In addition, we are subject to examination of
our income tax returns by various tax authorities. We regularly assess the likelihood of adverse outcomes
resulting from any examination to determine the adequacy of our provision for income taxes. An adverse
determination of an examination could have an adverse effect on our operating results and financial condition.
See also ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to Consolidated Financial
Statements—Note 14. Income Taxes.’’

Additionally, longstanding international tax norms that determine each country’s jurisdiction to tax
cross-border international trade are evolving (for example, those relating to the Actions currently being
undertaken by the OECD and similar actions by the G8 and G20) and U.S. tax reform may lead to further
changes in (or departure from) these norms. As these and other tax laws and related regulations change, our
financial results could be materially impacted. Given the unpredictability of these possible changes and their
potential interdependency, it is very difficult to assess whether the overall effect of such potential tax changes
would be cumulatively positive or negative for our earnings and cash flow, but such changes could adversely
impact our financial results.

Our credit agreements contain covenant restrictions that may limit our ability to operate our business.

We may be unable to respond to changes in business and economic conditions, engage in transactions that
might otherwise be beneficial to us, or obtain additional financing, because our debt agreements, our Affiliation
Agreement with Total, foreign exchange hedging agreements and equity derivative agreements contain, and any
of our other future similar agreements may contain, covenant restrictions that limit our ability to, among other
things:

•

•

incur additional debt, assume obligations in connection with letters of credit, or issue guarantees;

create liens;

• make certain investments or acquisitions;
•

enter into transactions with our affiliates;

•

•

•

sell certain assets;

redeem capital stock or make other restricted payments;

declare or pay dividends or make other distributions to stockholders; and

• merge or consolidate with any person.

Our ability to comply with these covenants is dependent on our future performance, which will be subject to

many factors, some of which are beyond our control, including prevailing economic conditions. In addition, our
failure to comply with these covenants could result in a default under our other debt instruments, which could

33

permit the holders to accelerate such debt. If any of our debt is accelerated, we may not have sufficient funds
available to repay such debt, which could materially and negatively affect our financial condition and results of
operations.

Risks Related to Our Supply Chain

Our long-term, firm commitment supply agreements could result in excess or insufficient inventory, place us
at a competitive disadvantage on pricing, or lead to disputes, each of which could impair our ability to meet
our cost reduction roadmap, and in some circumstances may force us to take a significant accounting charge.

If our supply agreements provide insufficient inventory to meet customer demand, or if our suppliers are
unable or unwilling to provide us with the contracted quantities, we may be forced to purchase additional supply
at market prices, which could be greater than expected and could materially and adversely affect our results of
operations. Due to the industry-wide shortage of polysilicon experienced before 2011, we purchased polysilicon
that we resold to third-party ingot and wafer manufacturers who deliver wafers to us that we then use in the
manufacturing of our solar cells. Without sufficient polysilicon, some of those ingot and wafer manufacturers
would not have been able to produce the wafers on which we rely. We have historically entered into multiple
long-term fixed supply agreements for periods of up to 10 years to match our estimated customer demand
forecasts and growth strategy for the next several years. The long-term nature of these agreements, which often
provide for fixed or inflation-adjusted pricing, may prevent us from benefiting from decreasing polysilicon costs,
has, and may continue to, cause us to pay more at unfavorable payment terms than the current market prices and
payment terms available to our competitors, and has in the past, and could again in the future, cause us to record
an impairment. In the event that we have inventory in excess of short-term requirements of polysilicon, in order
to reduce inventory or improve working capital, we may, and sometimes do, elect to sell such inventory in the
marketplace at prices below our purchase price, thereby incurring a loss.

Additionally, because certain of these agreements are ‘‘take or pay,’’ if certain of our agreements for

polysilicon from these suppliers were to decrease in the future, we could be required to purchase polysilicon that
we do not need, resulting in either storage costs or payment for polysilicon we nevertheless choose not to accept
from such suppliers. Additionally, existing arrangements from prior years have resulted in above current market
pricing for purchasing polysilicon, resulting in inventory losses we have realized. Further, we face significant,
specific counterparty risk under long-term supply agreements when dealing with suppliers without a long, stable
production and financial history. In the event any such supplier experiences financial difficulties or goes into
bankruptcy, it could be difficult or impossible, or may require substantial time and expense, for us to recover any
or all of our prepayments. Any of the foregoing could materially harm our financial condition and results of
operations.

We will continue to be dependent on a limited number of third-party suppliers for certain raw materials and
components for our products, which could prevent us from delivering our products to our customers within
required timeframes and could in turn result in sales and installation delays, cancellations, penalty payments,
and loss of market share.

We rely on a limited number of third-party suppliers for certain raw materials and components for our solar

cells, panels and power systems, such as polysilicon, inverters and module material. If we fail to maintain our
relationships with our suppliers or to build relationships with new suppliers, or if suppliers are unable to meet
demand through industry consolidation, we may be unable to manufacture our products or our products may be
available only at a higher cost or after a long delay.

To the extent the processes that our suppliers use to manufacture components are proprietary, we may be
unable to obtain comparable components from alternative suppliers. In addition, the financial markets could limit
our suppliers’ ability to raise capital if required to expand their production or satisfy their operating capital
requirements. As a result, they could be unable to supply necessary raw materials, inventory and capital
equipment which we would require to support our planned sales operations to us, which would in turn negatively
impact our sales volume, profitability, and cash flows. The failure of a supplier to supply raw materials or
components in a timely manner, or to supply raw materials or components that meet our quality, quantity and
cost requirements, could impair our ability to manufacture our products or could increase our cost of production.
If we cannot obtain substitute materials or components on a timely basis or on acceptable terms, we could be
prevented from delivering our products to our customers within required timeframes.

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Any such delays could result in sales and installation delays, cancellations, penalty payments or loss of

revenue and market share, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of
operations, and financial condition.

We utilize construction loans, term loans, sale-leaseback, preferred equity, and other financing structures to
fund acquisition, development, construction, and expansion of photovoltaic power plant projects in the future,
and such funds may or may not continue to be available as required to further our plans. Furthermore, such
project financing increases our consolidated debt and may be structurally senior to other debt such as our
Credit Agricole revolving credit facility and outstanding convertible debentures.

Certain of our subsidiaries and other affiliates are separate and distinct legal entities and, except in limited
circumstances, have no obligation to pay any amounts due with respect to our indebtedness or indebtedness of
other subsidiaries or affiliates, and do not guarantee the payment of interest on or principal of such indebtedness.
Such subsidiaries may borrow funds to finance particular projects. In the event of a default under a project
financing which we do not cure, the lenders or lessors generally have rights to the power plant project and
related assets. In the event of foreclosure after a default, we may not be able to retain any interest in the power
plant project or other collateral supporting such financing. In addition, any such default or foreclosure may
trigger cross default provisions in our other financing agreements, including our corporate debt obligations,
which could materially and adversely affect our results of operations. In the event of our bankruptcy, liquidation
or reorganization (or the bankruptcy, liquidation or reorganization of a subsidiary or affiliate), such subsidiaries’
or other affiliates’ creditors, including trade creditors and holders of debt issued by such subsidiaries or affiliates,
will generally be entitled to payment of their claims from the assets of those subsidiaries or affiliates before any
assets are made available for distribution to us or the holders of our indebtedness. As a result, holders of our
corporate indebtedness will be effectively subordinated to all present and future debts and other liabilities
(including trade payables) of certain of our subsidiaries. As of December 30, 2018, our subsidiaries had
$6.5 million in subsidiary project financing, which is effectively senior to our corporate debt, such as our Credit
Agricole revolving credit facility, our 4.00% debentures due 2023 and our 0.875% debentures due 2021.

Risks Related to Our Operations

We have significant international activities and customers, and plan to continue these efforts, which subject us
to additional business risks, including logistical complexity and political instability.

A substantial portion of our sales are made to customers outside of the United States, and a substantial

portion of our supply agreements are with supply and equipment vendors located outside of the United States.
We have solar cell and module production lines located at our manufacturing facilities in the Philippines,
Mexico, France, and Malaysia.

Risks we face in conducting business internationally include:
• multiple, conflicting and changing laws and regulations, export and import restrictions, employment
laws, environmental protection, regulatory requirements, international trade agreements, and other
government approvals, permits and licenses;

•

•

•

•

•

•

difficulties and costs in staffing and managing foreign operations as well as cultural differences;

potentially adverse tax consequences associated with current, future or deemed permanent establishment
of operations in multiple countries;

relatively uncertain legal systems, including potentially limited protection for intellectual property
rights, and laws, changes in the governmental incentives we rely on, regulations and policies which
impose additional restrictions on the ability of foreign companies to conduct business in certain
countries or otherwise place them at a competitive disadvantage in relation to domestic companies;

one-time transition tax by the U.S. on earnings of certain foreign subsidiaries that were previously tax
deferred;

inadequate local infrastructure and developing telecommunications infrastructures;

financial risks, such as longer sales and payment cycles and greater difficulty collecting accounts
receivable;

35

•

•

•

•

currency fluctuations, government-fixed foreign exchange rates, the effects of currency hedging activity,
and the potential inability to hedge currency fluctuations;

political and economic instability, including wars, acts of terrorism, political unrest, boycotts,
curtailments of trade and other business restrictions;

trade barriers such as export requirements, tariffs, taxes and other restrictions and expenses, which
could increase the prices of our products and make us less competitive in some countries; and

liabilities associated with compliance with laws (for example, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in the
U.S. and similar laws outside of the U.S.).

We have a complex organizational structure involving many entities globally. This increases the potential

impact of adverse changes in laws, rules and regulations affecting the free flow of goods and personnel, and
therefore heightens some of the risks noted above. Further, this structure requires us to effectively manage our
international inventory and warehouses. If we fail to do so, our shipping movements may not map with product
demand and flow. Unsettled intercompany balances between entities could result, if changes in law, regulations
or related interpretations occur, in adverse tax or other consequences affecting our capital structure, intercompany
interest rates and legal structure. If we are unable to successfully manage any such risks, any one or more could
materially and negatively affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

If we experience interruptions in the operation of our solar cell production lines, our revenue and results of
operations may be materially and adversely affected.

If our solar cell or module production lines suffer problems that cause downtime, we might be unable to
meet our production targets, which would adversely affect our business. Our manufacturing activities require
significant management attention, a significant capital investment and substantial engineering expenditures.

The success of our manufacturing operations is subject to significant risks including:

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

cost overruns, delays, supply shortages, equipment problems and other operating difficulties;

custom-built equipment may take longer or cost more to engineer than planned and may never operate
as designed;

incorporating first-time equipment designs and technology improvements, which we expect to lower
unit capital and operating costs, but which may not be successful;

our ability to obtain or maintain third-party financing to fund capital requirements;

difficulties in maintaining or improving our historical yields and manufacturing efficiencies;

difficulties in protecting our intellectual property and obtaining rights to intellectual property developed
by our manufacturing partners;

difficulties in hiring and retaining key technical, management, and other personnel;

potential inability to obtain, or obtain in a timely manner, financing, or approvals from governmental
authorities for operations; and

tariffs imposed on imported solar cells and modules which may cause market volatility, price
fluctuations, supply shortages, and project delays.

Any of these or similar difficulties may unexpectedly delay or increase costs of our supply of solar cells.

If we do not achieve satisfactory yields or quality in manufacturing our solar products, our sales could
decrease and our relationships with our customers and our reputation may be harmed.

The manufacture of solar cells is a highly complex process. Minor deviations in the manufacturing process
can cause substantial decreases in yield and in some cases, cause production to be suspended or yield no output.
We have from time to time experienced lower than anticipated manufacturing yields. As we expand our
manufacturing capacity and qualify additional suppliers, we may initially experience lower yields. If we do not
achieve planned yields, our product costs could increase, and product availability would decrease resulting in
lower revenues than expected. In addition, in the process of transforming polysilicon into ingots, a significant

36

portion of the polysilicon is removed in the process. In circumstances where we provide the polysilicon, if our
suppliers do not have very strong controls in place to ensure maximum recovery and utilization, our economic
yield can be less than anticipated, which would increase the cost of raw materials to us.

Additionally, products as complex as ours may contain undetected errors or defects, especially when first
introduced. For example, our solar cells or solar panels may contain defects that are not detected until after they
are shipped or are installed because we cannot test for all possible scenarios. These defects could cause us to
incur significant warranty, non-warranty, and re-engineering costs, divert the attention of our engineering
personnel from product development efforts, and significantly affect our customer relations and business
reputation. If we deliver solar products with errors or defects, including cells or panels of third-party
manufacturers, or if there is a perception that such solar products contain errors or defects, our credibility and the
market acceptance and sales of our products could be harmed. In addition, some of our arrangements with
customers include termination or put rights for non-performance. In certain limited cases, we could incur
liquidated damages or even be required to buy back a customer’s system at fair value on specified future dates if
certain minimum performance thresholds are not met.

A change in our 1603 U.S. Treasury Department Cash Grant proceeds or solar investment tax credits could
adversely affect our business, revenues, margins, results of operations and cash flows.

We have incorporated into our financial planning and agreements with our customers certain assumptions

regarding the future level of U.S. tax incentives, including the ITC, which is administered by the U.S. Treasury
Department (‘‘U.S. Treasury’’). The ITC allows qualified applicants to claim an amount equal to 30% of the
eligible cost basis for qualifying solar energy property. The U.S. Treasury also made payments under the Cash
Grant program in lieu of the ITC for projects which commenced construction prior to December 31, 2011 and
completed construction by December 31, 2016. We hold projects and have sold projects to certain customers
based on certain underlying assumptions regarding the ITC and Cash Grant, including for our California Valley
Solar Ranch and Solar Star projects. We have also accounted for certain projects and programs in our business
using the same assumptions.

Owners of our qualifying projects and our residential lease program have applied or will apply for the ITC,

and have applied for the Cash Grant. We have structured the tax incentive applications, both in timing and
amount, to be in accordance with the guidance provided by the U.S. Treasury and U.S. Internal Revenue Service
(‘‘IRS’’). Any changes to the U.S. Treasury or IRS guidance which we relied upon in structuring our projects,
failure to comply with the requirements, including the safe harbor protocols, lower levels of incentives granted,
or changes in assumptions including the estimated residual values and the estimated fair market value of financed
and installed systems for the purposes of Cash Grant and ITC applications, could materially and adversely affect
our business and results of operations. While all grants related to our projects have been fully paid by the U.S.
Treasury, if the IRS or U.S. Treasury disagrees, as a result of any future review or audit, with the fair market
value of, or other assumptions concerning, our solar projects or systems that we have constructed or that we
construct in the future, including the systems for which tax incentives have already been paid, it could have a
material adverse effect on our business and financial condition. We also have obligations to indemnify certain of
our customers for the loss of tax incentives to such customers. We may have to recognize impairments or lower
margins than initially anticipated for certain of our projects or our residential lease program. Additionally, if the
amount or timing of the Cash Grant or ITC payments received varies from what we have projected, our
revenues, margins and cash flows could be adversely affected and we may have to recognize losses, which would
have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

There are continuing developments in the interpretation and application of how companies should calculate

their eligibility and level of Cash Grant and ITC incentives. There have been recent cases in the U.S. district
courts that challenge the criteria for a true lease, which could impact whether the structure of our residential
lease program qualifies under the Cash Grant and ITC. Additionally, the Office of the Inspector General of the
U.S. Treasury has issued subpoenas to a number of significant participants in the rooftop solar energy installation
industry. The Inspector General is working with the Civil Division of the U.S. Department of Justice to
investigate the administration and implementation of the Cash Grant program, including potential
misrepresentations concerning the fair market value of certain solar power systems submitted for Cash Grant.
While we have not received a subpoena, we could be asked to participate in the information gathering process.
The results of the current investigation could affect the underlying assumption used by the solar industry,
including us, in our Cash Grant and ITC applications, which could reduce eligibility and level of incentives and

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could adversely affect our results of operations and cash flows. If the IRS redetermines the amount of the cash
grant awards, investors may be required to make corresponding adjustments to their taxable income or other
changes. Such adjustments may provide us with an indication of IRS practice regarding the valuation of
residential leased solar assets, and we would consider such adjustments in our accounting for our indemnification
obligations to investors who receive cash grants and investment tax credits.

We obtain certain of our capital equipment used in our manufacturing process from sole suppliers and if this
equipment is damaged or otherwise unavailable, our ability to deliver products on time will suffer, which in
turn could result in order cancellations and loss of revenue.

Some of the capital equipment used in the manufacture of our solar power products has been developed and
made specifically for us, is not readily available from multiple vendors and would be difficult to repair or replace
if it were to become damaged or stop working. If any of these suppliers were to experience financial difficulties
or go out of business, or if there were any damage to or a breakdown of our manufacturing equipment, our
business would suffer. In addition, a supplier’s failure to supply this equipment in a timely manner, with
adequate quality and on terms acceptable to us, could delay our future capacity expansion or manufacturing
process improvements and otherwise disrupt our production schedule or increase our costs of production.

If we cannot offer residential lease customers an attractive value proposition due to an inability to continue to
monetize tax benefits in connection with our residential lease arrangements, an inability to obtain financing
for our residential lease program, challenges implementing our third-party ownership model in new
jurisdictions, declining costs of retail electricity, or other reasons, we may be unable to continue to increase
the size of our residential lease program, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results
of operations, and financial condition.

Our residential lease program has been eligible for the ITC and Cash Grant. We have relied on, and expect

to continue to rely on, financing structures that monetize a substantial portion of those benefits. If we were
unable to continue to monetize the tax benefits in our financing structures or such tax benefits were reduced or
eliminated, we might be unable to provide financing or pricing that is attractive to our customers. Under current
law, the ITC will be reduced from approximately 30% of the cost of the solar system to approximately 26% for
solar systems placed into service after December 31, 2019, and then further reduced to approximately 22% for
solar systems placed into service after December 31, 2020, before being reduced permanently to 10% for
commercial projects and 0% for residential projects. In addition, Cash Grants are no longer available for new
solar systems.

Changes in existing law and interpretations by the IRS, Treasury, and the courts could reduce the

willingness of financing partners to invest in funds associated with our residential lease program. Additionally,
benefits under the Cash Grant and ITC programs are tied, in part, to the fair market value of our systems, as
ultimately determined by the federal agency administering the benefit program. This means that, in connection
with implementing financing structures that monetize such benefits, we need to, among other things, assess the
fair market value of our systems in order to arrive at an estimate of the amount of tax benefit expected to be
derived from the benefit programs. We incorporate third-party valuation reports that we believe to be reliable into
our methodology for assessing the fair market value of our systems, but these reports or other elements of our
methodology may cause our fair market value estimates to differ from those ultimately determined by the federal
agency administering the applicable benefit program. If the amount or timing of Cash Grant payments or ITC
received in connection with our residential lease program varies from what we have projected, due to
discrepancies in our fair value assessments or otherwise, our revenues, cash flows, and margins could be
adversely affected.

Additionally, if any of our financing partners that currently provide financing for our solar systems decide
not to continue to provide financing due to general market conditions, changes in tax benefits associated with our
solar systems, concerns about our business or prospects, or any other reason, or if they materially change the
terms under which they are willing to provide future financing, we will need to identify new financing partners
and negotiate new financing terms.

See also under this section, ‘‘Risks Related to Our Supply Chain—A change in our 1603 Treasury Cash

Grant proceeds or solar investment tax credit could adversely affect our business, revenues, margins, results of
operations and cash flows.’’

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We have to continuously build and improve infrastructure to support our residential lease program, and any

failure or delay in implementing the necessary processes and infrastructure could adversely affect our financial
results. We establish credit approval limits based on the credit quality of our customers. We may be unable to
collect rent payments from our residential lease customers in the event they enter into bankruptcy or otherwise
fail to make payments when due. If we experience higher customer default rates than we currently experience or
if we lower credit rating requirements for new customers, it could be more difficult or costly to attract future
financing. See also under this section, ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales Channels—The execution of our growth
strategy is dependent upon the continued availability of third-party financing arrangements for our solar power
plants, our residential lease program, and our customers, and is affected by general economic conditions.’’

We make certain assumptions in accounting for our residential lease program, including, among others,
assumptions in accounting for our residual value of the leased systems. As our residential lease program grows,
if the residual value of leased systems does not materialize as assumed, it will adversely affect our results of
operations. At the end of the term of the lease, our customers have the option to extend the lease and certain of
those customers may either purchase the leased systems at fair market value or return them to us. Should there
be a large number of returns, we may incur de-installation costs in excess of amounts reserved.

We believe that, as with our other customers, retail electricity prices factor significantly into the value
proposition of our products for our residential lease customers. If prices for retail electricity or electricity from
other renewable sources decrease, our ability to offer competitive pricing in our residential lease program could
be jeopardized because such decreases would make the purchase of our solar systems or the purchase of energy
under our lease agreements and PPAs less economically attractive.

Our leases are third-party ownership arrangements. Sales of electricity by third parties face regulatory
challenges in some states and jurisdictions. Other challenges pertain to whether third-party owned systems
qualify for the same levels of rebates or other non-tax incentives available for customer-owned solar energy
systems. Reductions in, or eliminations of, this treatment of these third-party arrangements could reduce demand
for our residential lease program. As we look to extend the third-party ownership model outside of the United
States, we will be faced with the same risks and uncertainties we have in the United States. Our growth outside
of the United States could depend on our ability to expand the third-party ownership model, and our failure to
successfully implement a third-party ownership model globally could adversely affect our financial results.

Project development or construction activities may not be successful, and we may make significant investments
without first obtaining project financing, which could increase our costs and impair our ability to recover our
investments.

The development and construction of solar power electric generation facilities and other energy

infrastructure projects involve numerous risks. We may be required to spend significant sums for preliminary
engineering, permitting, legal, and other expenses before we can determine whether a project is feasible,
economically attractive or capable of being built. In addition, we will often choose to bear the costs of such
efforts prior to obtaining project financing, prior to getting final regulatory approval, and prior to our final sale to
a customer, if any.

Successful completion of a particular project may be adversely affected by numerous factors, including:

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failures or delays in obtaining desired or necessary land rights, including ownership, leases and/or
easements;

failures or delays in obtaining necessary permits, licenses or other governmental support or approvals,
or in overcoming objections from members of the public or adjoining land owners;

uncertainties relating to land costs for projects;

unforeseen engineering problems;

access to available transmission for electricity generated by our solar power plants;

construction delays and contractor performance shortfalls;

work stoppages or labor disruptions and compliance with labor regulations;

cost over-runs;

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•

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•

availability of products and components from suppliers;

adverse weather conditions;

environmental, archaeological and geological conditions; and

availability of construction and permanent financing.

If we are unable to complete the development of a solar power plant, or fail to meet one or more agreed
target construction milestone dates, we may be subject to liquidated damages and/or penalties under the EPC
agreement or other agreements relating to the power plant, and we typically will not be able to recover our
investment in the project. We expect to invest a significant amount of capital to develop projects initially owned
by us or ultimately owned by third parties. If we are unable to complete the development of a solar power
project, we may write-down or write-off some or all of these capitalized investments, which would have an
adverse impact on our net income in the period in which the loss is recognized.

We act as the general contractor for many of our customers in connection with the installations of our solar
power systems and are subject to risks associated with construction, cost overruns, delays and other
contingencies tied to performance bonds and letters of credit, or other required credit and liquidity support
guarantees, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

We act as the general contractor for many of our customers in connection with the installation of our solar

power systems. Some customers require performance bonds issued by a bonding agency or letters of credit issued
by financial institutions, or may require other forms of liquidity support. Due to the general performance risk
inherent in construction activities, it has become increasingly difficult to attain suitable bonding agencies willing
to provide performance bonding. Obtaining letters of credit may require collateral. In the event we are unable to
obtain bonding, sufficient letters of credit, or other liquidity support, we will be unable to bid on, or enter into,
sales contracts requiring such bonding.

Almost all of our EPC contracts are fixed price contracts. We attempt to estimate all essential costs at the
time of entering into the EPC contract for a particular project, and these are reflected in the overall price that we
charge our customers for the project. These cost estimates are preliminary and may or may not be covered by
contracts between us or the subcontractors, suppliers, and any other parties that may become necessary to
complete the project. In addition, we require qualified, licensed subcontractors to install most of our systems.
Thus, if the cost of materials or skilled labor were to rise dramatically, or if financing costs were to increase, our
operating results could be adversely affected.

In addition, the contracts with some of our larger customers obligate us to pay substantial penalty payments

for each day or other period beyond an agreed target date that a solar installation for any such customer is not
completed, up to and including the return of the entire project sale price. This is particularly true in Europe,
where long-term, fixed feed-in tariffs available to investors are typically set during a prescribed period of project
completion, but the fixed amount declines over time for projects completed in subsequent periods. We face
material financial penalties in the event we fail to meet the completion deadlines, including but not limited to a
full refund of the contract price paid by the customers. In certain cases, we do not control all of the events which
could give rise to these penalties, such as reliance on the local utility to timely complete electrical substation
construction.

Furthermore, investors often require that the solar power system generate specified levels of electricity in

order to maintain their investment returns, allocating substantial risk and financial penalties to us if those levels
are not achieved, up to and including the return of the entire project sale price. Also, our customers often require
protections in the form of conditional payments, payment retentions or holdbacks, and similar arrangements that
condition its future payments on performance. Delays in solar panel or other supply shipments, other construction
delays, unexpected performance problems in electricity generation or other events could cause us to fail to meet
these performance criteria, resulting in unanticipated and severe revenue and earnings losses and financial
penalties. Construction delays are often caused by inclement weather, failure to timely receive necessary
approvals and permits, or delays in obtaining necessary solar panels, inverters or other materials. Additionally,
we sometimes purchase land in connection with project development and assume the risk of project completion.
All such risks could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

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Acquisitions of other companies, project development pipelines and other assets, or investments in joint
ventures with other companies could materially and adversely affect our financial condition and results of
operations, and dilute our stockholders’ equity.

To expand our business and maintain our competitive position, we have acquired a number of other

companies and entered into several joint ventures over the past several years, including our acquisitions of
Cogenra Solar, Inc. and Solaire Generation, Inc. in fiscal 2015, our acquisition of 100% of the equity voting
interest in our former joint venture AUO SunPower Sdn. Bhd. in fiscal 2016, our entry into a manufacturing joint
venture in China in 2017 and our SunStrong joint venture with Hannon Armstrong and acquisition of SolarWorld
Americas in fiscal 2018. In the future, we may acquire additional companies, project pipelines, products, or
technologies or enter into additional joint ventures or other strategic initiatives.

Acquisitions and joint ventures involve a number of risks that could harm our business and result in the

acquired business or joint venture not performing as expected, including:

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insufficient experience with technologies and markets in which the acquired business or joint venture is
involved, which may be necessary to successfully operate and/or integrate the business or the joint
venture;

problems integrating the acquired operations, personnel, IT infrastructure, technologies or products with
the existing business and products;

diversion of management time and attention from the core business to the acquired business or joint
venture;

potential failure to retain or hire key technical, management, sales and other personnel of the acquired
business or joint venture;

difficulties in retaining or building relationships with suppliers and customers of the acquired business
or joint venture, particularly where such customers or suppliers compete with us;

potential failure of the due diligence processes to identify significant issues with product quality and
development or legal and financial liabilities, among other things;

potential inability to obtain, or obtain in a timely manner, approvals from governmental authorities or
work councils, which could delay or prevent acquisitions, delay our ability to achieve synergies, or
adversely impact our successful operation of acquired companies or joint ventures;

potential necessity to re-apply for permits of acquired projects;

problems managing joint ventures with our partners, meeting capital requirements for expansion,
potential litigation with joint venture partners and reliance upon joint ventures which we do not control;
for example, our ability to effectively manage the SunStrong joint venture with Hannon Armstrong;

differences in philosophy, strategy, or goals with our joint venture partners;

subsequent impairment of the acquired assets, including intangible assets; and

assumption of liabilities including, but not limited to, lawsuits, tax examinations, warranty issues,
environmental matters, and liabilities associated with compliance with laws (for example, the FCPA).

Additionally, we may decide that it is in our best interests to enter into acquisitions or joint ventures that are

dilutive to earnings per share or that negatively impact margins as a whole. In an effort to reduce our cost of
revenue, we have and may continue to enter into acquisitions or joint ventures involving suppliers or
manufacturing partners, which would expose us to additional supply chain risks. Acquisitions or joint ventures
could also require investment of significant financial resources and require us to obtain additional equity
financing, which may dilute our stockholders’ equity, or require us to incur additional indebtedness. Such equity
or debt financing may not be available on terms acceptable to us. In addition, we could in the future make
additional investments in our joint ventures or guarantee certain financial obligations of our joint ventures, which
could reduce our cash flows, increase our indebtedness and expose us to the credit risk of our joint ventures.

To the extent that we invest in upstream suppliers or downstream channel capabilities, we may experience
competition or channel conflict with certain of our existing and potential suppliers and customers. Specifically,

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existing and potential suppliers and customers may perceive that we are competing directly with them by virtue
of such investments and may decide to reduce or eliminate their supply volume to us or order volume from us.
In particular, any supply reductions from our polysilicon, ingot or wafer suppliers could materially reduce
manufacturing volume.

Acquisitions could also result in dilutive issuances of equity securities, the use of our available cash, or the

incurrence of debt, which could harm our operating results.

We could be adversely affected by any violations of the FCPA and foreign anti-bribery laws.

The FCPA generally prohibits companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to
non-U.S. government officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. Other countries in which we
operate also have anti-bribery laws, some of which prohibit improper payments to government and
non-government persons and entities. Our policies mandate compliance with these anti-bribery laws. We continue
to acquire businesses outside of the United States and operate in many parts of the world that have experienced
governmental corruption to some degree and, in certain circumstances, strict compliance with anti-bribery laws
may conflict with local customs and practices. In addition, due to the level of regulation in our industry, our
entry into new jurisdictions through internal growth or acquisitions requires substantial government contact where
norms can differ from U.S. standards. While we implement policies and procedures and conduct training
designed to facilitate compliance with these anti-bribery laws, thereby mitigating the risk of violations of such
laws, our employees, subcontractors and agents may take actions in violation of our policies and anti-bribery
laws. Any such violation, even if prohibited by our policies, could subject us to criminal or civil penalties or
other sanctions, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows, and
reputation.

Fluctuations in the demand for our products may cause impairment of our project assets and other long-lived
assets or cause us to write off equipment or inventory, and each of these events would adversely affect our
financial results.

We have tangible project assets on our Consolidated Balance Sheets related to capitalized costs incurred in

connection with the development of solar power systems. Project assets consist primarily of capitalized costs
relating to solar power system projects in various stages of development that we incur prior to the sale of the
solar power system to a third party. These costs include costs for land and costs for developing and constructing
a solar power system. These project assets could become impaired if there are changes in the fair value of these
capitalized costs. If these project assets become impaired, we may write-off some or all of the capitalized project
assets, which would have an adverse impact on our financial results in the period in which the loss is recognized.

In addition, if the demand for our solar products decreases, our manufacturing capacity could be

underutilized, and we may be required to record an impairment of our long-lived assets, including facilities and
equipment, which would increase our expenses. In improving our manufacturing processes consistent with our
cost reduction roadmap, we could write off equipment that is removed from the manufacturing process. In
addition, if product demand decreases or we fail to forecast demand accurately, we could be required to write off
inventory or record excess capacity charges, which would have a negative impact on our gross margin.
Factory-planning decisions may shorten the useful lives of long-lived assets, including facilities and equipment,
and cause us to accelerate depreciation. Each of the above events would adversely affect our future financial
results.

Our success depends on the continuing contributions of our key personnel.

We rely heavily on the services of our key executive officers and the loss of services of any principal

member of our management team could adversely affect our operations. We have experienced significant
turnover in our management team in the recent past, and we are investing significant resources in developing
new members of management as we complete our restructuring and strategic transformation. We also anticipate
that over time we will need to hire a number of highly skilled technical, manufacturing, sales, marketing,
administrative, and accounting personnel. In recent years, we have conducted several restructurings, which may
negatively affect our ability to execute our strategy and business model. The competition for qualified personnel
is intense in our industry. We may not be successful in attracting and retaining sufficient numbers of qualified
personnel to support our anticipated growth. We cannot guarantee that any employee will remain employed with
us for any definite period of time since all of our employees, including our key executive officers, serve at-will
and may terminate their employment at any time for any reason.

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We may not be able to expand our business or manage our future growth effectively.

We may not be able to expand our business or manage future growth. We plan to continue to improve our

manufacturing processes and build additional manufacturing production over the next five years, which will
require successful execution of:

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•

expanding our existing manufacturing facilities and developing new manufacturing facilities, which
would increase our fixed costs and, if such facilities are underutilized, would negatively impact our
results of operations;

ensuring delivery of adequate polysilicon, ingots, and third-party cells;

enhancing our customer resource management and manufacturing management systems;

implementing and improving additional and existing administrative, financial and operations systems,
procedures and controls, including the need to centralize, update and integrate our global financial
internal control;

hiring additional employees;

expanding and upgrading our technological capabilities;

• managing multiple relationships with our customers, suppliers and other third parties;
• maintaining adequate liquidity and financial resources; and
•

continuing to increase our revenues from operations.

Improving our manufacturing processes, expanding our manufacturing facilities or developing new facilities

may be delayed by difficulties such as unavailability of equipment or supplies or equipment malfunction.
Ensuring delivery of adequate polysilicon, ingots, and third-party cells is subject to many market risks including
scarcity, significant price fluctuations and competition. Maintaining adequate liquidity is dependent upon a
variety of factors including continued revenues from operations, working capital improvements, and compliance
with our indentures and credit agreements. If we are unsuccessful in any of these areas, we may not be able to
achieve our growth strategy and increase production capacity as planned during the foreseeable future. In
addition, we need to manage our organizational growth, including rationalizing reporting structures, support
teams, and enabling efficient decision making. For example, the administration of the residential lease program
requires processes and systems to support this business model. If we are not successful or if we delay our
continuing implementation of such systems and processes, we may adversely affect the anticipated volumes in
our residential lease business. If we are unable to manage our growth effectively, we may not be able to take
advantage of market opportunities, develop new solar cells and other products, satisfy customer requirements,
execute our business plan, or respond to competitive pressures.

Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and interest rates could adversely affect our business and
results of operations.

We have significant sales globally, and we are exposed to movements in foreign exchange rates, primarily

related to sales to European customers that are denominated in Euros. A depreciation of the Euro would
adversely affect our margins on sales to European customers. When foreign currencies appreciate against the U.S.
dollar, inventories and expenses denominated in foreign currencies become more expensive. An increase in the
value of the U.S. dollar relative to foreign currencies could make our solar power products more expensive for
international customers, thus potentially leading to a reduction in demand, our sales and profitability. As a result,
substantial unfavorable changes in foreign currency exchange rates could have a substantial adverse effect on our
financial condition and results of operations. Although we seek to reduce our currency exposure by engaging in
hedging transactions where we deem it appropriate, we do not know whether our efforts will be successful.
Because we hedge some of our expected future foreign exchange exposure, if associated revenues do not
materialize, we could experience losses. In the past, we have experienced an adverse impact on our revenue,
gross margin, cash position and profitability as a result of foreign currency fluctuations. In addition, any break-up
of the Eurozone would disrupt our sales and supply chain, expose us to financial counterparty risk, and
materially and adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

We are exposed to interest rate risk because many of our customers depend on debt financing to purchase

our solar power systems. An increase in interest rates could make it difficult for our customers to obtain the

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financing necessary to purchase our solar power systems on favorable terms, or at all, and thus lower demand for
our solar power products, reduce revenue and adversely affect our operating results. An increase in interest rates
could lower a customer’s return on investment in a system or make alternative investments more attractive
relative to solar power systems, which, in each case, could cause our customers to seek alternative investments
that promise higher returns or demand higher returns from our solar power systems, which could reduce our
revenue and gross margin and adversely affect our operating results. Our interest expense would increase to the
extent interest rates rise in connection with our variable interest rate borrowings. Conversely, lower interest rates
have an adverse impact on our interest income. See also ‘‘Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures
About Market Risk’’ and under this section ‘‘Risks Related to Our Sales Channels—The execution of our growth
strategy is dependent upon the continued availability of third-party financing arrangements for our solar power
plants, our residential lease program and our customers, and is affected by general economic conditions.’’

We depend on third-party contract manufacturers to assemble a portion of our solar cells into solar panels
and any failure to obtain sufficient assembly and test capacity could significantly delay our ability to ship our
solar panels and damage our customer relationships.

We outsource a portion of module manufacturing to contract manufacturers in China. As a result of
outsourcing this final step in our production, we face several significant risks, including limited control over
assembly and testing capacity, delivery schedules, quality assurance, manufacturing yields, production costs and
tariffs. If the operations of our third-party contract manufacturers were disrupted or their financial stability
impaired, or if they were unable or unwilling to devote capacity to our solar panels in a timely manner, our
business could suffer as we might be unable to produce finished solar panels on a timely basis. We also risk
customer delays resulting from an inability to move module production to an alternate provider or to complete
production internationally, and it may not be possible to obtain sufficient capacity or comparable production costs
at another facility in a timely manner. In addition, migrating our design methodology to third-party contract
manufacturers or to a captive panel assembly facility could involve increased costs, resources and development
time, and utilizing additional third-party contract manufacturers could expose us to further risk of losing control
over our intellectual property and the quality of our solar panels. Any reduction in the supply of solar panels
could impair our revenue by significantly delaying our ability to ship products and potentially damage our
relationships with new and existing customers, any of which could have a material and adverse effect on our
financial condition and results of operation.

While we believe we currently have effective internal control over financial reporting, we may identify a
material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting that could cause investors to lose
confidence in the reliability of our financial statements and result in a decrease in the value of our common
stock.

Our management is responsible for maintaining internal control over financial reporting designed to provide
reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of consolidated financial
statements for external purposes in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Management concluded that as of the end of
each of fiscal 2018, 2017, and 2016, our internal control over financial reporting and our disclosure controls and
procedures were effective.

We need to continuously maintain our internal control processes and systems and adapt them as our business

grows and changes. This process is expensive, time-consuming, and requires significant management attention.
We cannot be certain that our internal control measures will continue to provide adequate control over our
financial processes and reporting and ensure compliance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
Furthermore, as we grow our business or acquire other businesses, our internal controls may become more
complex and we may require significantly more resources to ensure they remain effective. Failure to implement
required new or improved controls, or difficulties encountered in their implementation, either in our existing
business or in businesses that we may acquire, could harm our operating results or cause us to fail to meet our
reporting obligations. If we or our independent registered public accounting firm identify material weaknesses in
our internal controls, the disclosure of that fact, even if quickly remedied, may cause investors to lose confidence
in our financial statements and the trading price of our common stock may decline.

Remediation of a material weakness could require us to incur significant expense and if we fail to remedy

any material weakness, our financial statements may be inaccurate, our ability to report our financial results on a
timely and accurate basis may be adversely affected, our access to the capital markets may be restricted, the

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trading price of our common stock may decline, and we may be subject to sanctions or investigation by
regulatory authorities, including the Securities and Exchange Commission (‘‘SEC‘‘) or The NASDAQ Global
Select Market. We may also be required to restate our financial statements from prior periods.

We may in the future be required to consolidate the assets, liabilities and financial results of certain of our
existing or future joint ventures, which could have an adverse impact on our financial position, gross margin,
and operating results.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has issued accounting guidance regarding variable interest

entities (‘‘VIEs’’) that affects our accounting treatment of our existing and future joint ventures. To ascertain
whether we are required to consolidate an entity, we determine whether it is a VIE and if we are the primary
beneficiary in accordance with the accounting guidance. Factors we consider in determining whether we are the
VIE’s primary beneficiary include the decision making authority of each partner, which partner manages the
day-to-day operations of the joint venture and each partner’s obligation to absorb losses or right to receive
benefits from the joint venture in relation to that of the other partner. Changes in the financial accounting
guidance, or changes in circumstances at each of these joint ventures, could lead us to determine that we have to
consolidate the assets, liabilities and financial results of such joint ventures. Consolidation of our VIEs could
have a material adverse impact on our financial position, gross margin and operating results and could
significantly increase our indebtedness. In addition, we may enter into future joint ventures or make other equity
investments, which could have an adverse impact on us because of the financial accounting guidance regarding
VIEs.

Our affiliation with Total S.A. may require us to join in certain tax filings with Total S.A. in the future. The
allocation of tax liabilities between us and Total S.A., and any future agreements with Total S.A. regarding tax
indemnification and certain tax liabilities may adversely affect our financial position.

We have not joined in tax filings on a consolidated, combined or unitary basis with Total S.A., and no tax
sharing agreement is currently in place. We may in the future become required to join in certain tax filings with
Total S.A. on a consolidated, combined, or unitary basis in certain jurisdictions, at which point we may seek to
enter into a tax sharing agreement with Total S.A., which would allocate the tax liabilities among the parties. The
entry into any future agreement with Total S.A. may result in less favorable allocation of certain liabilities than
we experienced before becoming subject to consolidated, combined, or unitary filing requirements, and may
adversely affect our financial position.

Our ability to use our net operating loss and credit carryforwards to offset future taxable income may be
subject to certain limitations.

As of December 30, 2018, we had federal net operating loss carryforwards of $779.9 million for tax

purposes; of which, $81.6 million was generated in fiscal year 2018 and can be carried forward indefinitely
under the Tax Cuts and Job Acts of 2017 (‘‘The Act’’). The remaining federal net operating loss carry forward of
$698.3 million, which were generated prior to 2018, will expire at various dates from 2031 to 2037. As of
December 30, 2018, we had California state net operating loss carryforwards of approximately $777.7 million, of
which $5.2 million relate to debt issuance and will benefit equity when realized. These California net operating
loss carryforwards will expire at various dates from 2029 to 2038. We also had federal credit carryforwards of
approximately $73.9 million, of which $19.2 million relate to debt issuance and will benefit equity when
realized. We had California credit carryforwards of $9.0 million for state tax purposes, of which $4.7 million
relate to debt issuance and will benefit equity when realized. These federal credit carryforwards will expire at
various dates from 2019 to 2038, and the California credit carryforwards do not expire. Our ability to utilize our
net operating loss and credit carryforwards is dependent upon our ability to generate taxable income in future
periods and may be limited due to restrictions imposed on utilization of net operating loss and credit
carryforwards under federal and state laws upon a change in ownership, such as transaction with Cypress
Semiconductor Corporation (‘‘Cypress‘‘) while we were deemed to be a member and subsidiary of the Cypress
consolidated group.

Section 382 of the Code imposes restrictions on the use of a corporation’s net operating losses, as well as
certain recognized built-in losses and other carryforwards, after an ‘‘ownership change’’ occurs. A Section 382
‘‘ownership change’’ occurs if one or more stockholders or groups of stockholders who own at least 5% of our
stock increase their ownership by more than 50 percentage points over their lowest ownership percentage within

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the prior three-year period (calculated on a rolling basis). The issuance of common stock upon a conversion of
our outstanding convertible notes debentures, and/or other issuances or sales of our stock (including certain
transactions involving our stock that are outside of our control) could result in (or could have resulted in) an
ownership change under Section 382. If an ‘‘ownership change’’ occurs, Section 382 would impose an annual
limit on the amount of pre-change net operating losses and other losses we can use to reduce our taxable income
generally equal to the product of the total value of our outstanding equity immediately prior to the ‘‘ownership
change’’ and the applicable federal long-term tax-exempt interest rate for the month of the ‘‘ownership change’’
(subject to certain adjustments).

The majority of U.S. federal net operating losses were generated prior to 2018, and these losses may be

carried forward for up to 20 years. The annual limitation may effectively provide a cap on the cumulative
amount of pre-ownership change losses, including certain recognized built-in losses that may be utilized. Such
pre-ownership change losses in excess of the cap may be lost. In addition, if an ownership change were to occur,
it is possible that the limitations imposed on our ability to use pre-ownership change losses and certain
recognized built-in losses could cause a net increase in our U.S. federal income tax liability and require U.S.
federal income taxes to be paid earlier than otherwise would be paid if such limitations were not in effect.
Further, if for financial reporting purposes the amount or value of these deferred tax assets is reduced, such
reduction would have a negative impact on the book value of our common stock.

Our headquarters and manufacturing facilities, as well as the facilities of certain subcontractors and
suppliers, are located in regions that are subject to earthquakes, floods, and other natural disasters, and
climate change and climate change regulation could have an adverse effect on our operations.

Our headquarters and research and development operations are located in California, and our manufacturing
facilities are located in the Philippines, Malaysia, France, Mexico and Oregon, U.S. Any significant earthquake,
flood, or other natural disaster in these countries or countries where our suppliers are located could materially
disrupt our management operations and/or our production capabilities, and could result in our experiencing a
significant delay in delivery, or substantial shortage, of our products and services.

In addition, legislators, regulators, and non-governmental organizations, as well as companies in many

business sectors, are considering ways to reduce green-house gas emissions. Further regulation could be
forthcoming at the federal or state level with respect to green-house gas emissions. Such regulation or similar
regulations in other countries could result in regulatory or product standard requirements for our global business,
including our manufacturing operations. Furthermore, the potential physical impacts of climate change on our
operations may include changes in weather patterns (including floods, tsunamis, drought and rainfall levels),
water availability, storm patterns and intensities, and temperature levels. These potential physical effects may
adversely affect the cost, production, sales and financial performance of our operations.

We sell our solar products to agencies of the U.S. government, and as a result, we are subject to a number of
procurement rules and regulations, and our business could be adversely affected by an audit by the U.S.
government if it were to identify errors or a failure to comply with regulations.

We have sold and continue to sell our solar power systems to various U.S. government agencies. In
connection with these contracts, we must comply with and are affected by laws and regulations relating to the
award, administration, and performance of U.S. government contracts, which may impose added costs on our
business. We are expected to perform in compliance with a vast array of federal laws and regulations, including,
without limitation, the Federal Acquisition Regulation, the Truth in Negotiations Act, the Federal False Claims
Act, the Anti-Kickback Act of 1986, the Trade Agreements Act, the Buy American Act, the Procurement Integrity
Act, and the Davis Bacon Act. A violation of specific laws and regulations, even if prohibited by our policies,
could result in the imposition of fines and penalties, reductions of the value of our contracts, contract
modifications or termination, or suspension or debarment from government contracting for a period of time.

In some instances, these laws and regulations impose terms or rights that are more favorable to the

government than those typically available to commercial parties in negotiated transactions. For example, the U.S.
government may terminate any of our government contracts either at its convenience or for default based on
performance. A termination arising out of our default may expose us to liability and have a material adverse
effect on our ability to compete for future contracts.

U.S. government agencies may audit and investigate government contractors. These agencies review a
contractor’s performance under its contracts, cost structure, and compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and

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standards. If an audit or investigation uncovers improper or illegal activities, we may be subject to civil or
criminal penalties and administrative sanctions, including termination of contracts, forfeiture of profits,
suspension of payments, fines, and suspension or prohibition from doing business with the U.S. government. In
addition, we could suffer reputational harm if allegations of impropriety were made against us.

Compliance with environmental regulations can be expensive, and noncompliance with these regulations may
result in adverse publicity and potentially significant monetary damages and fines.

We are required to comply with all foreign, U.S. federal, state and local laws and regulations regarding

pollution control and protection of the environment. In addition, under some statutes and regulations, a
government agency, or other parties, may seek recovery and response costs from owners or operators of property
where releases of hazardous substances have occurred or are ongoing, even if the owner or operator was not
responsible for such release or otherwise at fault. We use, generate and discharge toxic, volatile and otherwise
hazardous chemicals and wastes in our research and development and manufacturing activities. Any failure by us
to control the use of, or to restrict adequately the discharge of, hazardous substances could subject us to, among
other matters, potentially significant monetary damages and fines or liabilities or suspensions in our business
operations. In addition, if more stringent laws and regulations are adopted in the future, the costs of compliance
with these new laws and regulations could be substantial. If we fail to comply with present or future
environmental laws and regulations, we may be required to pay substantial fines, suspend production or cease
operations, or be subjected to other sanctions.

In addition, U.S. legislation includes disclosure requirements regarding the use of ‘‘conflict’’ minerals mined

from the Democratic Republic of Congo and adjoining countries and procedures regarding a manufacturer’s
efforts to prevent the sourcing of such ‘‘conflict’’ minerals. We have incurred and will incur additional costs to
comply with the disclosure requirements, including costs related to determining the source of any of the relevant
minerals and metals used in our products. The implementation of these requirements could affect the sourcing
and availability of minerals used in the manufacture of solar products. As a result, there may only be a limited
pool of suppliers who provide conflict free minerals, and we cannot be certain that we will be able to obtain
products in sufficient quantities or at competitive prices. Since our supply chain is complex, we have not been
able to sufficiently verify, and in the future we may not be able to sufficiently verify, the origins for these
conflict minerals used in our products. As a result, we may face reputational challenges with our customers and
other stakeholders if we are unable to sufficiently verify the origins for all minerals used in our products.

Our insurance for certain indemnity obligations we have to our officers and directors may be inadequate, and
potential claims could materially and negatively impact our financial condition and results of operations.

Pursuant to our certificate of incorporation, by-laws, and certain indemnification agreements, we indemnify

our officers and directors for certain liabilities that may arise in the course of their service to us. Although we
currently maintain directors and officers liability insurance for certain potential third-party claims for which we
are legally or financially unable to indemnify them, such insurance may be inadequate to cover certain claims. In
addition, in previous years, we have primarily self-insured with respect to potential third-party claims. If we were
required to pay a significant amount on account of these liabilities for which we self-insured, our business,
financial condition, and results of operations could be materially harmed.

Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property

We depend on our intellectual property, and we may face intellectual property infringement claims that could
be time-consuming and costly to defend and could result in the loss of significant rights.

From time to time, we, our respective customers, or third parties with whom we work may receive letters,

including letters from other third parties, and may become subject to lawsuits with such third parties alleging
infringement of their patents. Additionally, we are required by contract to indemnify some of our customers and
our third-party intellectual property providers for certain costs and damages of patent infringement in
circumstances where our products are a factor creating the customer’s or these third-party providers’ infringement
liability. This practice may subject us to significant indemnification claims by our customers and our third-party
providers. We cannot assure investors that indemnification claims will not be made or that these claims will not
harm our business, operating results or financial condition. Intellectual property litigation is very expensive and
time-consuming and could divert management’s attention from our business and could have a material adverse

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effect on our business, operating results or financial condition. If there is a successful claim of infringement
against us, our customers or our third-party intellectual property providers, we may be required to pay substantial
damages to the party claiming infringement, stop selling products or using technology that contains the allegedly
infringing intellectual property, or enter into royalty or license agreements that may not be available on
acceptable terms, if at all. Parties making infringement claims may also be able to bring an action before the
International Trade Commission that could result in an order stopping the importation into the United States of
our solar products. Any of these judgments could materially damage our business. We may have to develop
non-infringing technology, and our failure in doing so or in obtaining licenses to the proprietary rights on a
timely basis could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We have filed, and may continue to file, claims against other parties for infringing our intellectual property
that may be very costly and may not be resolved in our favor.

To protect our intellectual property rights and to maintain our competitive advantage, we have filed, and
may continue to file, suits against parties who we believe infringe our intellectual property. Intellectual property
litigation is expensive and time consuming, could divert management’s attention from our business, and could
have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, or financial condition, and our enforcement
efforts may not be successful. In addition, the validity of our patents may be challenged in such litigation. Our
participation in intellectual property enforcement actions may negatively impact our financial results.

Our business is subject to a variety of U.S. and international laws, rules, policies, and other obligations
regarding privacy, data protection, and other matters.

We are subject to federal, state, and international laws relating to the collection, use, retention, security, and

transfer of customer, employee, and business partner personally identifiable information (‘‘PII’’), including the
European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (‘‘GDPR’’), which came into effect in May 2018. In many
cases, these laws apply not only to third-party transactions, but also to transfers of information between one
company and its subsidiaries, and among the subsidiaries and other parties with which we have commercial
relations. The introduction of new products or expansion of our activities in certain jurisdictions may subject us
to additional laws and regulations. Foreign data protection, privacy, and other laws and regulations, including
GDPR, can be more restrictive than those in the United States. These U.S. federal and state and foreign laws and
regulations, including GDPR which can be enforced by private parties or government entities, are constantly
evolving and can be subject to significant change. In addition, the application and interpretation of these laws
and regulations, including GDPR, are often uncertain, particularly in the new and rapidly evolving industry in
which we operate, and may be interpreted and applied inconsistently from country to country and inconsistently
with our current policies and practices. These existing and proposed laws and regulations can be costly to
comply with and can delay or impede the development of new products, result in negative publicity, increase our
operating costs, require significant management time and attention, and subject us to inquiries or investigations,
claims or other remedies, including fines, which may be significant, or demands that we modify or cease existing
business practices.

A failure by us, our suppliers, or other parties with whom we do business to comply with posted privacy

policies or with other federal, state, or international privacy-related or data protection laws and regulations,
including GDPR, in effect since May 2018, could result in proceedings against us by governmental entities or
others, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, and financial condition.

We rely substantially upon trade secret laws and contractual restrictions to protect our proprietary rights, and,
if these rights are not sufficiently protected, our ability to compete and generate revenue could suffer.

We seek to protect our proprietary manufacturing processes, documentation, and other written materials
primarily under trade secret and copyright laws. We also typically require employees, consultants, and third
parties, such as our vendors and customers, with access to our proprietary information to execute confidentiality
agreements. The steps we take to protect our proprietary information may not be adequate to prevent
misappropriation of our technology. Our systems may be subject to intrusions, security breaches, or targeted theft
of our trade secrets. In addition, our proprietary rights may not be adequately protected because:

•

others may not be deterred from misappropriating our technologies despite the existence of laws or
contracts prohibiting such misappropriation;

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•

•

•

policing unauthorized use of our intellectual property may be difficult, expensive, and time-consuming,
the remedy obtained may be inadequate to restore protection of our intellectual property, and moreover,
we may be unable to determine the extent of any unauthorized use;

the laws of other countries in which we market our solar products, such as some countries in the
Asia/Pacific region, may offer little or no protection for our proprietary technologies; and

reports we file in connection with government-sponsored research contracts are generally available to
the public and third parties may obtain some aspects of our sensitive confidential information.

Reverse engineering, unauthorized copying, or other misappropriation of our proprietary technologies could
enable third parties to benefit from our technologies without compensating us for doing so. Our joint ventures or
our partners may not be deterred from misappropriating our proprietary technologies despite contractual and
other legal restrictions. Legal protection in countries where our joint ventures are located may not be robust and
enforcement by us of our intellectual property rights may be difficult. As a result, our joint ventures or our
partners could directly compete with our business. Any such activities or any other inabilities to adequately
protect our proprietary rights could harm our ability to compete, to generate revenue, and to grow our business.

We may be subject to breaches of our information technology systems, which could lead to disclosure of our
internal information, damage our reputation or relationships with dealers and customers, and disrupt access
to our online services. Such breaches could subject us to significant reputational, financial, legal, and
operational consequences.

Our business requires us to use and store confidential and proprietary information, intellectual property,
commercial banking information, personal information concerning customers, employees, and business partners,
and corporate information concerning internal processes and business functions. Malicious attacks to gain access
to such information affects many companies across various industries, including ours.

We use encryption and authentication technologies to secure the transmission and storage of data. These
security measures may be compromised as a result of third-party security breaches, employee error, malfeasance,
faulty password management, or other irregularity or malicious effort, and result in persons obtaining
unauthorized access to our data.

We devote resources to network security, data encryption, and other security measures to protect our systems

and data, but these security measures cannot provide absolute security. Because the techniques used to obtain
unauthorized access, disable or degrade service, or sabotage systems change frequently, target end users through
phishing and other malicious techniques, and/or may be difficult to detect for long periods of time, we may be
unable to anticipate these techniques or implement adequate preventative measures. As a result, we have
experienced such breaches of our systems in the past, and may experience a breach of our systems in the future
that reduces our ability to protect sensitive data. In addition, hardware, software, or applications we develop or
procure from third parties may contain defects in design or manufacture or other problems that could
unexpectedly compromise information security. Unauthorized parties may also attempt to gain access to our
systems or facilities through fraud, trickery or other forms of deceiving our team members, contractors and
temporary staff. If we experience, or are perceived to have experienced, a significant data security breach, fail to
detect and appropriately respond to a significant data security breach, or fail to implement disclosure controls and
procedures that provide for timely disclosure of data security breaches deemed material to our business, including
corrections or updates to previous disclosures, we could be exposed to a risk of loss, increased insurance costs,
remediation and prospective prevention costs, damage to our reputation and brand, litigation and possible
liability, or government enforcement actions, any of which could detrimentally affect our business, results of
operations, and financial condition.

We may also share information with contractors and third-party providers to conduct our business. Although

such contractors and third-party providers typically implement encryption and authentication technologies to
secure the transmission and storage of data, those third-party providers may experience a significant data security
breach, which may also detrimentally affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition as
discussed above. See also under this section, ‘‘Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property-We rely substantially
upon trade secret laws and contractual restrictions to protect our proprietary rights, and, if these rights are not
sufficiently protected, our ability to compete and generate revenue could suffer.’’

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We may not obtain sufficient patent protection on the technology embodied in the solar products we currently
manufacture and market, which could harm our competitive position and increase our expenses.

Although we substantially rely on trade secret laws and contractual restrictions to protect the technology in

the solar products we currently manufacture and market, our success and ability to compete in the future may
also depend to a significant degree upon obtaining patent protection for our proprietary technology. We currently
own multiple patents and patent applications which cover aspects of the technology in the solar cells and
mounting systems that we currently manufacture and market. Material patents that relate to our systems products
and services primarily relate to our rooftop mounting products and ground-mounted tracking products. We intend
to continue to seek patent protection for those aspects of our technology, designs, and methodologies and
processes that we believe provide significant competitive advantages.

Our patent applications may not result in issued patents, and even if they result in issued patents, the patents

may not have claims of the scope we seek or we may have to refile patent applications due to newly discovered
prior art. In addition, any issued patents may be challenged, invalidated, or declared unenforceable, or even if we
obtain an award of damages for infringement by a third party, such award could prove insufficient to compensate
for all damages incurred as a result of such infringement.

The term of any issued patent is generally 20 years from its earliest filing date and if our applications are
pending for a long time period, we may have a correspondingly shorter term for any patent that may issue. Our
present and future patents may provide only limited protection for our technology and may be insufficient to
provide competitive advantages to us. For example, competitors could develop similar or more advantageous
technologies on their own or design around our patents. Also, patent protection in certain foreign countries may
not be available or may be limited in scope and any patents obtained may not be readily enforceable because of
insufficient judicial effectiveness, making it difficult for us to aggressively protect our intellectual property from
misuse or infringement by other companies in these countries. Our inability to obtain and enforce our intellectual
property rights in some countries may harm our business. In addition, given the costs of obtaining patent
protection, we may choose not to protect certain innovations that later turn out to be important.

We may not be able to prevent others from using the term SunPower or similar terms, or other trademarks
which we hold, in connection with their solar power products which could adversely affect the market
recognition of our name and our revenue.

‘‘SunPower‘‘ and the SunPower logo are our registered trademarks in certain countries, including the United
States, for uses that include solar cells and solar panels. We are seeking registration of these trademarks in other
countries, but we may not be successful in some of these jurisdictions. We hold registered trademarks for
SunPower, Maxeon, Oasis, EnergyLink, InvisiMount, Greenbotics, SolarBridge, The Power of One, and many
more marks, in certain countries, including the United States. We have not registered, and may not be able to
register, these trademarks in other key countries. In the foreign jurisdictions where we are unable to obtain or
have not tried to obtain registrations, others may be able to sell their products using trademarks compromising or
incorporating ‘‘SunPower,’’ or a variation thereof, or our other chosen brands, which could lead to customer
confusion. In addition, if there are jurisdictions where another proprietor has already established trademark rights
in marks containing ‘‘SunPower,’’ or our other chosen brands, we may face trademark disputes and may have to
market our products with other trademarks or without our trademarks, which may undermine our marketing
efforts. We may encounter trademark disputes with companies using marks which are confusingly similar to the
SunPower mark, or our other marks, which if not resolved favorably, could cause our branding efforts to suffer.
In addition, we may have difficulty in establishing strong brand recognition with consumers if others use similar
marks for similar products.

Our past and possible future reliance on government programs to partially fund our research and
development programs could impair our ability to commercialize our solar power products and services.

Government funding of some of our research and development efforts imposed certain restrictions on our
ability to commercialize results and could grant commercialization rights to the government. In some funding
awards, the government is entitled to intellectual property rights arising from the related research. Such rights
include a nonexclusive, nontransferable, irrevocable, paid-up license to practice or have practiced each subject
invention developed under an award throughout the world by or on behalf of the government. Other rights
include the right to require us to grant a license to the developed technology or products to a third party or, in
some cases, if we refuse, the government may grant the license itself, if the government determines that action is

50

necessary because we fail to achieve practical application of the technology, because action is necessary to
alleviate health or safety needs, to meet requirements of federal regulations, or to give the United States industry
preference. Accepting government funding can also require that manufacturing of products developed with
federal funding be conducted in the United States.

We may be subject to information technology system failures or network disruptions that could damage our
business operations, financial conditions, or reputation.

We may be subject to information technology system failures and network disruptions. These may be caused
by natural disasters, accidents, power disruptions, telecommunications failures, acts of terrorism or war, computer
viruses, physical or electronic break-ins, or similar events or disruptions. System redundancy may be ineffective
or inadequate, and our disaster recovery planning may not be sufficient for all eventualities. Such failures or
disruptions could result in delayed or canceled orders. System failures and disruptions could also impede the
manufacturing and shipping of products, delivery of online services, transactions processing, and financial
reporting.

Risks Related to Our Debt and Equity Securities

Our debentures are effectively subordinated to our existing and any future secured indebtedness and
structurally subordinated to existing and future liabilities and other indebtedness of our current and any
future subsidiaries.

Our debentures are our general, unsecured obligations and rank equally in right of payment with all of our

existing and any future unsubordinated, unsecured indebtedness. As of December 30, 2018, we and our
subsidiaries had $825.0 million in principal amount of senior unsecured indebtedness outstanding, which ranks
pari passu with our debentures. Our debentures are effectively subordinated to our existing and any future
secured indebtedness we may have, including for example, our $300.0 million revolving credit facility with
Credit Agricole, to the extent of the value of the assets securing such indebtedness, and structurally subordinated
to our existing and any future liabilities and other indebtedness of our subsidiaries. In addition to our unsecured
indebtedness described above, as of December 30, 2018, we and our subsidiaries had $49.1 million in principal
amount of senior secured indebtedness outstanding, which includes $6.7 million in non-recourse project debt and
zero in non-recourse long-term debt related to our residential lease business. These liabilities may also include
other indebtedness, trade payables, guarantees, lease obligations, and letter of credit obligations. Our debentures
do not restrict us or our current or any future subsidiaries from incurring indebtedness, including senior secured
indebtedness, in the future, nor do they limit the amount of indebtedness we can issue that is equal in right of
payment. For a discussion the impact of our liquidity on our ability to meet our payment obligations under our
debentures, see also ‘‘Risks Related to Our Liquidity—We have a significant amount of debt outstanding. Our
substantial indebtedness and other contractual commitments could adversely affect our business, financial
condition and results of operations, as well as our ability to meet our payment obligations under our debentures
and our other debt.’’

Total’s majority ownership of our common stock may adversely affect the liquidity and value of our common
stock.

As of December 30, 2018, Total owned approximately 56% of our outstanding common stock. Pursuant to

the Affiliation Agreement between us and Total, the Board of Directors of SunPower includes five designees
from Total, giving Total majority control of our Board. As a result, subject to the restrictions in the Affiliation
Agreement, Total possesses significant influence and control over our affairs. Our non-Total stockholders have
reduced ownership and voting interest in our company and, as a result, have less influence over the management
and policies of our company than they exercised prior to Total’s tender offer. As long as Total controls us, the
ability of our other stockholders to influence matters requiring stockholder approval is limited. Total’s stock
ownership and relationships with members of our Board of Directors could have the effect of preventing minority
stockholders from exercising significant control over our affairs, delaying or preventing a future change in
control, impeding a merger, consolidation, takeover, or other business combination or discouraging a potential
acquirer from making a tender offer or otherwise attempting to obtain control of us, limiting our financing
options. These factors in turn could adversely affect the market price of our common stock or prevent our
stockholders from realizing a premium over the market price of our common stock. The Affiliation Agreement
limits Total and any member of the Total affiliated companies (‘‘Total Group’’) from effecting, seeking, or

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entering into discussions with any third party regarding any transaction that would result in the Total Group
beneficially owning our shares in excess of certain thresholds during a standstill period. The Affiliation
Agreement also imposes certain limitations on the Total Group’s ability to seek to effect a tender offer or merger
to acquire 100% of our outstanding voting power. Such provisions may not be successful in preventing the Total
Group from engaging in transactions which further increase their ownership and negatively impact the price of
our common stock. See also ‘‘Risks Related to Our Liquidity—We may be unable to generate sufficient cash
flows or obtain access to external financing necessary to fund our operations and make adequate capital
investments as planned due to the general economic environment and the continued market pressure driving
down the average selling prices of our solar power products, among other factors.’’ Finally, the market for our
common stock has become less liquid and more thinly traded as a result of the Total tender offer. The lower
number of shares available to be traded could result in greater volatility in the price of our common stock and
affect our ability to raise capital on favorable terms in the capital markets.

Conversion of our outstanding 0.875% debentures or 4.00% debentures, and future substantial issuances or
dispositions of our common stock or other securities, could dilute ownership and earnings per share or cause
the market price of our stock to decrease.

The conversion of some or all of our outstanding 0.875% or 4.00% debentures into shares of our common

stock will dilute the ownership interests of existing stockholders, including holders who had previously converted
their debentures. Any sales in the public market of the common stock issuable upon such conversion could
adversely affect prevailing market prices of our common stock. Sales of our common stock in the public market
or sales of any of our other securities could dilute ownership and earnings per share, and even the perception that
such sales could occur could cause the market prices of our common stock to decline. In addition, the existence
of our outstanding debentures may encourage short selling of our common stock by market participants who
expect that the conversion of the debentures could depress the prices of our common stock.

Future sales of our common stock in the public market could lower the market price for our common stock
and adversely impact the trading price of our debentures.

In the future, we may sell additional shares of our common stock to raise capital. We cannot predict the size

of future issuances or the effect, if any, that they may have on the market price for our common stock. In
addition, a substantial number of shares of our common stock is reserved for issuance upon the exercise of stock
options, restricted stock awards, restricted stock units, warrants, and upon conversion of the debentures and our
outstanding 0.875% and 4.00% debentures. The issuance and sale of substantial amounts of common stock, or
the perception that such issuances and sales may occur, could adversely affect the trading price of our debentures
and the market price of our common stock and impair our ability to raise capital through the sale of additional
equity or equity-linked securities.

The price of our common stock, and therefore of our outstanding 0.875% and 4.00% debentures, may
fluctuate significantly.

Our common stock has experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations. The trading price of our
common stock could be subject to further wide fluctuations due to many factors, including the factors discussed
in this risk factors section. In addition, the stock market in general, and The NASDAQ Global Select Market and
the securities of technology companies and solar companies in particular, have experienced severe price and
volume fluctuations. These trading prices and valuations, including our own market valuation and those of
companies in our industry generally, may not be sustainable. These broad market and industry factors may
decrease the market price of our common stock, regardless of our actual operating performance. Because the
0.875% and 4.00% debentures are convertible into our common stock (and/or cash equivalent to the value of our
common stock), volatility or depressed prices of our common stock could have a similar effect on the trading
price of the debentures.

If securities or industry analysts change their recommendations regarding our stock adversely, our stock price
and trading volume could decline.

The trading market for our common stock is influenced by the research and reports that industry or
securities analysts publish about us, our business or our market. If one or more of the analysts who cover us
change their recommendation regarding our stock adversely, our stock price would likely decline. If one or more

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of these analysts ceases coverage of our company or fails to regularly publish reports on us, we could lose
visibility in the financial markets, which in turn could cause our stock price or trading volume, and the value of
our debentures, to decline.

We do not intend to pay dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future.

We have never declared or paid cash dividends. For the foreseeable future, we intend to retain any earnings,

after considering any dividends on any preferred stock, to finance the development of our business, and we do
not anticipate paying any cash dividends on our common stock. Any future determination to pay dividends will
be at the discretion of our Board of Directors and will be dependent upon then-existing conditions, including our
operating results and financial condition, capital requirements, contractual restrictions, business prospects, and
other factors that our Board of Directors considers relevant. Accordingly, holders of our common stock must rely
on sales of their common stock after price appreciation, which may never occur, as the only way to realize a
return on their shares of common stock.

Delaware law and our certificate of incorporation and by-laws contain anti-takeover provisions and our
outstanding 0.875% and 4.00% debentures provide for a right to convert upon certain events, any of which
could delay or discourage takeover attempts that stockholders may consider favorable.

Provisions in our certificate of incorporation and by-laws may have the effect of delaying or preventing a

change of control or changes in our management. These provisions include the following:

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

the right of the Board of Directors to elect a director to fill a vacancy created by the expansion of the
Board of Directors;

the prohibition of cumulative voting in the election of directors, which would otherwise allow less than
a majority of stockholders to elect director candidates;

the requirement for advance notice for nominations for election to the Board of Directors or for
proposing matters that can be acted upon at a stockholders’ meeting;

the ability of the Board of Directors to issue, without stockholder approval, up to 10 million shares of
preferred stock with terms set by the Board of Directors, which rights could be senior to those of
common stock;

our Board of Directors is divided into three classes of directors, with the classes to be as nearly equal
in number as possible;

stockholders may not call special meetings of the stockholders, except by Total under limited
circumstances; and

our Board of Directors is able to alter our by-laws without obtaining stockholder approval.

Certain provisions of our outstanding debentures could make it more difficult or more expensive for a third
party to acquire us. Upon the occurrence of certain transactions constituting a fundamental change, including an
entity (such as Total) becoming the beneficial owner of 75% of our voting stock, holders of our outstanding
debentures will have the right, at their option, to require us to repurchase, at a cash repurchase price equal to
100% of the principal amount plus accrued and unpaid interest on the debentures, all or a portion of their
debentures. We may also be required to issue additional shares of our common stock upon conversion of such
debentures in the event of certain fundamental changes.

ITEM 1B: UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

53

ITEM 2: PROPERTIES

The table below presents details for each of our principal properties:

Facility

Solar cell manufacturing facility1,2
Solar cell manufacturing facility3
Former solar cell manufacturing facility1,4
Solar cell manufacturing support and storage facility
Former solar module assembly facility1,4
Solar cell and module manufacturing facility5
Solar module assembly facility
Solar module assembly facility
Solar module assembly facility
Solar module assembly facility
Corporate headquarters
Global support offices
Global support offices
Global support offices
Global support offices

Location

Philippines
Malaysia
Philippines
Philippines
Philippines
Oregon, U.S.
Mexico
Mexico
France
France
California, U.S.
California, U.S.
Texas, U.S.
France
Philippines

Approximate
Square
Footage

Held

Lease Term

390,000
885,000
641,000
167,000
132,000
600,000
320,000
191,000
36,000
42,000
129,000
163,000
69,000
27,000
65,000

Owned
Owned
Owned
Leased
Owned
Owned
Leased
Leased
Owned
Leased
Leased
Leased
Leased
Leased
Owned

n/a
n/a
n/a
2024
n/a
n/a
2021
2026
n/a
2018
2021
2023
2019
2023
n/a

1

2

3

4

5

The lease for the underlying land expires in May 2048 and is renewable for an additional 25 years.

The solar cell manufacturing facility we operate in the Philippines has a total annual capacity of 450 MW.

The solar cell manufacturing facility we operate in Malaysia has a total rated annual capacity of over 700 MW.

We still owned this facility as of December 30, 2018; however, relevant operations ceased during fiscal 2016.

The solar cell manufacturing facility we operate in Oregon, U.S. has a total rated annual capacity of over 250 MW.

As of December 30, 2018, our principal properties included operating solar cell manufacturing facilities with

a combined total annual capacity of over 1.4 GW and solar module assembly facilities with a combined total
annual capacity of approximately 1.5 GW. For more information about our manufacturing capacity, see ‘‘Item 1.
Business.’’

We identify and allocate property, plant and equipment by country and by business segment. For more

information see ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to Consolidated Financial
Statements—Note 6. Balance Sheet Components and Note 18. Segments, respectively.’’

ITEM 3.

LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

The disclosure under ‘‘Item 1. Financial Statements—Note 10. Commitments and Contingencies—Legal

Matters’’ in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K is
incorporated herein by reference.

ITEM 4: MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

54

PART II

ITEM 5: MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Our common stock is listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the trading symbol ‘‘SPWR.’’

As of February 8, 2019, there were approximately 730 holders of record of our common stock. A
substantially greater number of holders are in ‘‘street name’’ or beneficial holders, whose shares are held of
record by banks, brokers, and other financial institutions.

Dividends

We have never declared or paid any cash dividend on our common stock, and we do not currently intend to

pay a cash dividend on our common stock in the foreseeable future. Certain of our debt agreements place
restrictions on us and our subsidiaries’ ability to pay cash dividends. For more information on our common stock
and dividend rights, see ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to Consolidated
Financial Statements—Note 15. Common Stock.’’

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

The following table sets forth all purchases made by or on behalf of us or any ‘‘affiliated purchaser,’’ as

defined in Rule 10b-18(a)(3) under the Exchange Act, of shares of our common stock during each of the
indicated periods.

Period

October 1, 2018 through October 28, 2018 . . . . . . . . . . . . .
October 29, 2018 through November 25, 2018 . . . . . . . . . .
November 26, 2018 through December 30, 2018 . . . . . . . .

Total Number
of Shares
Purchased as
Part of
Publicly
Announced
Plans or
Programs

Maximum
Number of
Shares That
May Yet Be
Purchased
Under the
Publicly
Announced
Plans or
Programs

—
—
—

—

—
—
—

—

Total Number
of Shares
Purchased1

Average Price
Paid Per
Share

14,035
16,349
12,268

42,652

$6.83
$6.33
$6.66

$6.59

1

The shares purchased represent shares surrendered to satisfy tax withholding obligations in connection with the vesting of restricted
stock issued to employees.

55

ITEM 6:

SELECTED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL DATA

The following selected consolidated financial data should be read together with ‘‘Item 7. Management’s

Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations’’ and ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements
and Supplementary Data’’ included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

(In thousands, except per share data)

December 30,
2018

December 31,
2017

Year Ended1
January 1,
2017

January 3,
2016

December 28,
2014

Consolidated Statements of Operations Data
Revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,726,085 $ 1,794,047 $2,552,637 $1,576,473 $3,027,265
(18,645) $ 221,819 $ 244,646 $ 625,127
Gross margin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ (297,081) $
Operating income (loss) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ (849,031) $(1,024,917) $ (427,754) $ (206,294) $ 251,240
Income (loss) from continuing operations before
income taxes and equity in earnings (loss) of
unconsolidated investees. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ (898,671) $(1,200,750) $ (528,392) $ (242,311) $ 184,614

Income (loss) from continuing operations

per share of common stock:
Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $
Diluted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $

(5.76) $
(5.76) $

(6.67) $
(6.67) $

(3.25) $
(3.25) $

(1.39) $
(1.39) $

1.91
1.55

1

Previously reported information for fiscal years 2017 and 2016 have been restated for the adoption of Accounting Standards
Codification (ASC) Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers, while previously reported information for fiscal years 2015
and 2014 have not been restated and are, therefore, not comparable to the fiscal years 2018, 2017 and 2016 information. For further
discussion of this standard, see Note 1 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

(In thousands)

December 30,
2018

December 31,
2017

As of1
January 1,
2017

January 3,
2016

December 28,
2014

Consolidated Balance Sheet Data
Cash and cash equivalents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 309,407 $ 435,097 $ 425,309 $ 954,528 $ 956,175
Working capital . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 368,765 $ 253,424 $ 832,754 $1,515,918 $1,273,236
Total assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,352,649 $4,028,656 $4,968,742 $4,856,993 $4,345,582
Long-term debt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $
40,528 $ 430,634 $ 451,243 $ 478,948 $ 214,181
Convertible debt, net of current portion. . . . . . . . . $ 818,356 $ 816,454 $1,113,478 $1,110,960 $ 692,955
Total stockholders’ equity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ (208,696) $ 588,209 $1,531,038 $1,449,149 $1,534,174

1

Previously reported information for fiscal years 2017 and 2016 have been restated for the adoption of Accounting Standards
Codification (ASC) Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers, while previously reported information for fiscal years 2015
and 2014 have not been restated and are, therefore, not comparable to the fiscal years 2018, 2017 and 2016 information. For further
discussion of this standard, see Note 1 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

56

ITEM 7: MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

You should read the following discussion of our financial condition and results of operations in conjunction

with our consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto included elsewhere in this Annual Report on
Form 10-K. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Our actual results could differ materially from
those discussed below. Such risks and uncertainties include a variety of factors, some of which are beyond our
control. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include those discussed in the section titled
‘‘Risk Factors’’ included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. These forward-looking statements should not be
relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date, and we are under no obligation to, and
expressly disclaim any responsibility to, update or alter our forward-looking statements, whether as a result of
new information, future events or otherwise.

Overview

SunPower Corporation (together with its subsidiaries, ‘‘SunPower,’’ ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ or ‘‘our’’) is a leading

global energy company that delivers complete solar solutions to customers worldwide through an array of
hardware, software, and financing options and through utility-scale solar power system construction and
development capabilities, operations and maintenance (‘‘O&M’’) services, and ‘‘Smart Energy‘‘ solutions. Our
Smart Energy initiative is designed to add layers of intelligent control to homes, buildings and grids—all
personalized through easy-to-use customer interfaces. Of all the solar cells commercially available to the mass
market, we believe our solar cells have the highest conversion efficiency, a measurement of the amount of
sunlight converted by the solar cell into electricity. For more information about our business, please refer to the
section titled ‘‘Part I. Item 1. Business‘‘ in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Effective January 1, 2018, we adopted the requirements of Accounting Standards Update (‘‘ASU’’) 2014-09,

Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606) using the full retrospective method as discussed in ‘‘Part
II—Item 8. Financial Statements—Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements—Note 1. Organization and
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies’’ of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. All amounts and disclosures
set forth in this Form 10-K reflect these changes.

Segments Overview

In the fourth quarter of 2018, in connection with our efforts to improve operational focus and transparency,
drive overhead accountability into segment operating results, and increase strategic agility across the value chain
from our upstream business’ core strength in manufacturing and technology and our downstream business’s core
strength in offering complete solutions in residential and commercial markets, we reorganized our segment
reporting to an upstream and downstream structure. Previously, we operated under three end-customer segments,
comprised of our (i) Residential Segment, (ii) Commercial Segment, and (iii) Power Plant Segment. Historically,
the Residential Segment referred to sales of solar energy solutions to residential end-customers, the Commercial
Segment referred to sales of energy solutions to commercial and public entity end-customers, and the Power
Plant Segment referred to our large-scale solar products and systems and component sales.

Under the new segmentation, SunPower Energy Services Segment (‘‘SunPower Energy Services‘‘ or
‘‘Downstream’’) refers to sales of solar energy solutions in the North America region previously included in the
legacy Residential Segment and Commercial Segment (collectively previously referred to as ‘‘Distributed
Generation‘‘ or ‘‘DG’’) including direct sales of turn-key engineering, procurement and construction (‘‘EPC’’)
services, sales to our third-party dealer network, sales of energy under power purchase agreements (‘‘PPAs’’),
storage solutions, cash sales and long-term leases directly to end customers, and sales to resellers. The SunPower
Energy Services Segment also includes sales of our global Operations and Maintenance (‘‘O&M’’) services. The
SunPower Technologies Segment (‘‘SunPower Technologies‘‘ or ‘‘Upstream’’) refers to our technology
development, worldwide solar panel manufacturing operations, equipment supply to resellers and commercial and
residential end-customers outside of North America (‘‘International DG’’), and worldwide power plant project
development and project sales. Upon reorganization, some support functions and responsibilities, which
previously resided within the corporate function, have been shifted to each segment, including financial planning
and analysis, legal, treasury, tax and accounting support and services, among others.

57

The reorganization provides our management with a comprehensive financial overview of our key
businesses. The application of this structure permits us to align our strategic business initiatives and corporate
goals in a manner that best focuses our businesses and support operations for success.

Our Chief Executive Officer, as the chief operating decision maker (‘‘CODM’’), reviews our business,
manages resource allocations and measures performance of our activities among the SunPower Energy Services
Segment and SunPower Technologies Segment.

Reclassifications of prior period segment information have been made to conform to the current period

presentation. These changes do not affect our previously reported Consolidated Financial Statements.

For more information about our business segments, see the section titled ‘‘Part I. Item 1. Business‘‘ of this

Annual Report on Form 10-K. For more segment information, see ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements—Note 18.
Segment Information’’ in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form
10-K.

Unit of Power

When referring to our solar power systems, our facilities’ manufacturing capacity, and total sales, the unit of
electricity in watts for kilowatts (‘‘KW’’), megawatts (‘‘MW’’), and gigawatts (‘‘GW’’) is direct current (‘‘DC’’),
unless otherwise noted as alternating current (‘‘AC’’).

Levelized Cost of Energy (‘‘LCOE’’)

LCOE is an evaluation of the life-cycle energy cost and life-cycle energy production of an energy producing

system. It allows alternative technologies to be compared across different scales of operation, investment or
operating time periods. It captures capital costs and ongoing system-related costs, along with the amount of
electricity produced, and converts them into a common metric. Key drivers for LCOE measures for photovoltaic
(‘‘PV’’) products include panel efficiency, capacity factors, reliable system performance, and the life of the
system.

Customer Cost of Energy (‘‘CCOE’’)

Our customers are focused on reducing their overall cost of energy by intelligently integrating solar and
other Distributed Generation sources, energy efficiency, energy management, and energy storage systems with
their existing utility-provided energy. The CCOE measurement is an evaluation of a customer’s overall cost of
energy, taking into account the cost impact of each individual generation source (including the utility), energy
storage systems, and energy management systems. The CCOE measurement includes capital costs and ongoing
operating costs, along with the amount of electricity produced, stored, saved, or re-sold, and converts all of these
variables into a common metric. The CCOE metric allows customers to compare different portfolios of
generation sources, energy storage, and energy management, and to tailor their solution towards optimization.

Seasonal Trends and Economic Incentives

Our business is subject to industry-specific seasonal fluctuations including changes in weather patterns and

economic incentives, among others. Sales have historically reflected these seasonal trends with the largest
percentage of total revenues realized during the last two quarters of a fiscal year. The construction of solar power
systems or installation of solar power components and related revenue may decline during cold and/or rainy
winter months. In the United States, many customers make purchasing decisions towards the end of the year in
order to take advantage of tax credits or for other budgetary reasons. In addition, revenues may fluctuate due to
the timing of project sales, construction schedules, and revenue recognition of certain projects, which may
significantly impact the quarterly profile of our results of operations. We may also retain certain development
projects on our balance sheet for longer periods of time than in preceding periods in order to optimize the
economic value we receive at the time of sale in light of market conditions, which can fluctuate after we have
committed to projects. Delays in disposing of projects, or changes in amounts realized on disposition, may lead
to significant fluctuations to the period-over-period profile of our results of operations and our cash available for
working capital needs.

58

Fiscal Years

We have a 52-to-53-week fiscal year that ends on the Sunday closest to December 31. Accordingly, every

fifth or sixth year will be a 53-week fiscal year. Fiscal 2018, 2017 and 2016 are 52-week fiscal years. Our fiscal
2018 ended on December 30, 2018, fiscal 2017 ended on December 31, 2017 and fiscal 2016 ended on January
1, 2017.

Outlook

Demand

During fiscal 2018 we faced market challenges, including competitive solar product pricing pressure
including the impact of tariffs imposed pursuant to Section 201 and Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. On
January 23, 2018, the President of the United States issued Proclamation 9693, which approved recommendations
to provide relief to U.S. manufacturers and imposed safeguard tariffs on imported solar cells and modules, based
on the investigations, findings, and recommendations of the International Trade Commission. The tariffs went
into effect on February 7, 2018. While solar cells and modules based on interdigitated back contact (‘‘IBC’’)
technology, like our Maxeon 3, Maxeon 2 and related products, were granted exclusion from these safeguard
tariffs on September 19, 2018, our solar products based on other technologies continue to be subject to the
safeguard tariffs. Additionally, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (‘‘USTR’’) initiated an
investigation under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 into the government of China’s acts, policies, and
practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation. The USTR imposed additional
import duties of up to 25% on certain Chinese products covered by the Section 301 remedy. These tariffs include
certain solar power system components and finished products, including those purchased from our suppliers for
use in our products and used in our business. In the near term, imposition of these tariffs - on top of
anti-dumping and countervailing duties on Chinese solar cells and modules, imposed under the prior
administration - is likely to result in a wide range of impacts to the U.S. solar industry, global manufacturing
market and our business. Such tariffs could cause market volatility, price fluctuations, and demand reduction.
Uncertainties associated with the Section 201 and Section 301 trade cases prompted us to adopt a restructuring
plan and implement initiatives to reduce operating expenses and cost of revenue overhead and improve cash
flow. During fiscal 2018, we incurred total tariffs charges of approximately $42.5 million.

In fiscal 2019, we continue to focus on investments that we expect will offer the best opportunities for
growth including our industry-leading Maxeon 5 cell and panel technology, solar-plus-storage solutions and
digital platform to improve customer service and satisfaction in our SunPower Energy Services offerings. We
believe that our strategic decision to re-segment our business into an upstream and downstream structure to focus
our downstream efforts on our leading U.S. DG business while growing global sales of our upstream solar panel
business through our SunPower Solutions group will improve transparency and enable us to regain profitability
in 2019.

In late fiscal 2015, the U.S. government enacted a budget bill that extended the solar commercial investment

tax credit (the ‘‘Commercial ITC’’) under Section 48(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the
‘‘Code’’), and the individual solar investment tax credit under Section 25D of the Code (together with the
Commercial ITC, the ‘‘ITC’’) for five years, at rates gradually decreasing from 30% through 2019 to 22% in
2021. After 2021, the Commercial ITC is retained at 10%. During December 2017, the current administration
and Congress passed comprehensive reform of the Code which resulted in the reduction or elimination of various
industry-specific tax incentives in return for an overall reduction in corporate tax rates. For more information
about the ITC and other policy mechanisms, please refer to the section titled ‘‘Item 1.
Business—Regulations—Public Policy Considerations’’ of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. For more
information about how we avail ourselves of the benefits of public policies and the risks related to public
policies, please see the risk factors set forth under the caption ‘‘Part I. Item 1A. Risk Factors—Risks Related to
Our Sales Channels,’’ including ‘‘—The reduction, modification or elimination of government incentives could
cause our revenue to decline and harm our financial results’’ and ‘‘—Existing regulations and policies and
changes to these regulations and policies may present technical, regulatory, and economic barriers to the
purchase and use of solar power products, which may significantly reduce demand for our products and
services’’ of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

59

Supply

We are focused on delivering complete solar power generation solutions to our customers in both of our
business segments. As part of our complete solution approach, we launched our SunPower Helix product for our
commercial business customers during fiscal 2015 and our SunPower Equinox product for our residential
business customers during fiscal 2016. The Equinox and Helix systems are pre-engineered modular solutions for
residential and commercial applications, respectively, that combine our high-efficiency solar module technology
with integrated plug-and-play power stations, cable management systems, and mounting hardware that enable our
customers to quickly and easily complete system installations and manage their energy production. Our Equinox
systems utilize our latest Maxeon Gen 3 cell and ACPV technology for residential applications, where we are
also expanding our initiatives on storage and Smart Energy solutions. During fiscal 2016 we also launched our
next generation technology for our existing Oasis modular solar power blocks for power plant applications. With
the addition of these modular solutions in our residential and commercial applications, we are able to provide
complete solutions across all end-customers. Additionally, we continue to focus on producing our new lower cost,
high efficiency P-Series product line, which will enhance our ability to rapidly expand our global footprint with
minimal capital cost.

We continue to see significant and increasing opportunities in technologies and capabilities adjacent to our

core product offerings that can significantly reduce our customers’ CCOE, including the integration of energy
storage and energy management functionality into our systems, and have made investments to realize those
opportunities, enabling our customers to make intelligent energy choices by addressing how they buy energy,
how they use energy, and when they use it. We have added advanced module-level control electronics to our
portfolio of technology designed to enable longer series strings and significant balance of system components
cost reductions in large arrays. We currently offer solar panels that use microinverters designed to eliminate the
need to mount or assemble additional components on the roof or the side of a building and enable optimization
and monitoring at the solar panel level to ensure maximum energy production by the solar system.

We continue to improve our unique, differentiated solar cell and panel technology. We emphasize

improvement of our solar cell efficiency and LCOE and CCOE performance through enhancement of our existing
products, development of new products and reduction of manufacturing cost and complexity in conjunction with
our overall cost-control strategies. We are now producing our solar cells with over 25% efficiency in the lab and
have reached production panel efficiencies over 24%.

We have reduced our overall solar cell manufacturing output in an ongoing effort to match profitable
demand levels, with increasing bias toward our highest efficiency Maxeon 3 product platform, which utilizes our
latest solar cell technology, and our P-Series product, which utilizes conventional cell technology that we
purchase from third parties in low-cost supply chain ecosystems such as China. We previously closed our Fab 2
cell manufacturing facility and our panel assembly facility in the Philippines and are focusing on our latest
generation, lower cost panel assembly facilities in Mexico. As part of this realignment, we are reducing our
back-contact panel assembly capacity while increasing production of our new P-Series technology, including our
newly-acquired U.S. manufacturing capabilities.

We are focused on reducing the cost of our solar panels and systems, including working with our suppliers

and partners along all steps of the value chain to reduce costs by improving manufacturing technologies and
expanding economies of scale and reducing manufacturing cost and complexity in conjunction with our overall
cost-control strategies. We believe that the global demand for solar systems is highly elastic and that our
aggressive, but achievable, cost reduction roadmap will reduce installed costs for our customers across both of
our business segments and drive increased demand for our solar solutions.

We also work with our suppliers and partners to ensure the reliability of our supply chain. We have

contracted with some of our suppliers for multi-year supply agreements, under which we have annual minimum
purchase obligations. For more information about our purchase commitments and obligations, see ‘‘Liquidity and
Capital Resources—Contractual Obligations’’ and ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements—Note 4. Divestiture’’ and
‘‘Note 10. Commitments and Contingencies’’ in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this
Annual Report on Form 10-K.

We currently believe our supplier relationships and various short- and long-term contracts will afford us the
volume of material and services required to meet our planned output; however, we face the risk that the pricing
of our long-term supply contracts may exceed market value. For example, we purchase our polysilicon under

60

fixed-price long-term supply agreements. When the purchases under these agreements significantly exceed market
value they may result in inventory write-downs based on expected net realizable value. Additionally, existing
arrangements from prior years have resulted in above current market pricing for purchasing polysilicon, resulting
in inventory losses we have realized. For several years now, we have elected to sell polysilicon inventory in
excess of short-term needs to third parties at a loss, and may enter into further similar transactions in future
periods. For more information about these risks, see the risk factors set forth under the caption ‘‘Part 1. Item 1A.
Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Supply Chain,’’ including ‘‘—Our long-term, firm commitment supply
agreements could result in excess or insufficient inventory, place us at a competitive disadvantage on pricing, or
lead to disputes, each of which could impair our ability to meet our cost reduction roadmap, and in some
circumstances may force us to take a significant accounting charge’’ and ‘‘—We will continue to be dependent on
a limited number of third-party suppliers for certain raw materials and components for our products, which
could prevent us from delivering our products to our customers within required timeframes and could in turn
result in sales and installation delays, cancellations, penalty payments and loss of market share’’ of this Annual
Report on Form 10-K.

Property, Plant and Equipment

In the second quarter of fiscal 2018, we announced our proposed plan to transition our corporate structure

into upstream and downstream business units, and our long-term strategy to upgrade our IBC technology to
Maxeon 5. Accordingly, we are upgrading the equipment associated with our manufacturing operations for the
production of Maxeon 5 over the next several years. In connection with these planned changes that will impact
the utilization of our manufacturing assets, continued pricing challenges in the industry, as well as the ongoing
uncertainties associated with the Section 201 trade case, we determined indicators of impairment existed and
therefore performed a recoverability test by estimating future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be
generated from the use of these asset groups. Based on our fixed asset investment recoverability test performed,
we determined that our estimate of future undiscounted net cash in-flows was insufficient to recover the carrying
value of the upstream business unit’s assets and consequently performed an impairment analysis by comparing
the carrying value of the asset group to its estimated fair value.

Consistent with our accounting practices, in estimating the fair value of the long-lived assets, we made
estimates and judgments that we believe reasonable market participants would make. The impairment evaluation
utilized a discounted cash flow analysis inclusive of assumptions for forecasted profit, operating expenses, capital
expenditures, remaining useful life of our manufacturing assets, and a discount rate, as well as market and cost
approach valuations performed by a third-party valuation specialist, all of which require significant judgment by
management. In accordance with this evaluation, we recognized a non-cash impairment charge of $369.2 million
during our fiscal quarter ended July 1, 2018. The total impairment loss was allocated to the long-lived assets of
the group on a pro rata basis using the relative carrying amounts of those assets, except that the loss allocated to
an individual long-lived asset of the group did not reduce the carrying amount of that asset below its determined
fair value. As a result, non-cash impairment charges of $355.1 million, $12.8 million and $1.2 million were
allocated to ‘‘Cost of revenue‘‘, ‘‘Research and development‘‘ and ‘‘Sales, general and administrative‘‘,
respectively, on the Consolidated Statement of Operations for the year ended December 30, 2018. Further, the
$355.1 million non-cash impairment charge in ‘‘Cost of revenue‘‘ was allocated to our SunPower Technology
segment in the second quarter of fiscal 2018.

Residential Lease Assets

In conjunction with our efforts to generate more available liquid funds and simplify our balance sheet, we

made the decision to sell our interest in the Residential Lease Portfolio and engaged an external investment
banker to assist with the related marketing efforts in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017. As a result of these events,
in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, we determined it was necessary to evaluate the potential for impairment in
our ability to recover the carrying amount of our Residential Lease Portfolio.

In proceeding with the impairment evaluation, we determined that financing receivables related to sales-type

leases, which were previously classified as held for investment, qualified as held for sale based on our decision
to sell our interest in the Residential Lease Portfolio. Accordingly, we recognized an allowance for estimated
losses for the amount by which cost exceeded fair value. In addition, we reviewed the cash flows we would
expect to derive from the underlying asset that we recover from the lessees (unguaranteed residual value). Due to
our planned sale of the Residential Lease Portfolio and based on the indication of value received, we determined
that the decline in estimated residual value was other than temporary.

61

We also performed a recoverability test for the assets subject to operating leases by first estimating future
undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by the assets based on our own specific alternative courses
of action under consideration. The alternative courses were either to sell the assets subject to operating leases or
hold the assets until the end of their previously estimated useful lives. Upon consideration of the alternatives, we
considered the probability of selling the assets subject to operating leases and factored the indicative value
obtained from a prospective purchaser together with the probability of retaining the assets and the estimated
future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by holding the assets until the end of their
previously estimated useful lives in the recoverability test. Based on the evaluation performed, we determined
that as of December 31, 2017, the estimate of future undiscounted net cash flows is insufficient to recover the
carrying value of the assets subject to operating leases and consequently performed an impairment analysis by
comparing the carrying value of the assets to their estimated fair value.

We computed the fair value for the financing receivables associated with sales-type leases and long-lived

assets subject to operating leases using consistent methodology and assumptions that market participants would
use in their estimates of fair value. The estimates and judgments about future cash flows were made using an
income approach defined as Level 3 inputs under fair value measurement standards. The impairment evaluation
was based on the income approach (specifically a discounted cash flow analysis) and included assumptions for,
among others, forecasted contractual lease income, lease expenses, residual value of these lease assets, long-term
discount rates, and forecasted default rates over the lease term and discount rates, some of which require
significant judgment by management.

We updated the impairment evaluation discussed above to include new leases that were placed in service

since the last evaluation was performed. In accordance with such evaluation, we recognized a non-cash
impairment charge of $189.7 million as ‘‘Impairment of residential lease assets‘‘ on the Consolidated Statement
of Operations for the year ended December 30, 2018. Due to the fact that the Residential Lease Portfolio assets
are held in partnership flip structures with noncontrolling interests, we allocated a portion of the impairment
charge related to such noncontrolling interests through the hypothetical liquidation at book value (‘‘HLBV’’)
method. The allocation method applied to the noncontrolling interests and redeemable noncontrolling interests
resulted in a net gain of $9.6 million and a net gain of $150.6 million for the year ended December 30, 2018 and
December 31, 2017, respectively. As a result, the net impairment charges attributable to our stockholders totaled
$180.1 million and $473.7 million for the year ended December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively,
and were recorded within the SunPower Energy Services Segment.

The impairment evaluation includes uncertainty because it requires us to make assumptions and to apply

judgment to estimate future cash flows and assumptions.

Consistent with our intentions discussed above, on November 5, 2018, we entered into a Purchase and Sale

agreement (the ‘‘PSA’’) with HA SunStrong Capital LLC (‘‘HA SunStrong Parent’’), a subsidiary of Hannon
Armstrong, to sell 49.0% membership interests in SunStrong for cash proceeds of $10.0 million.

On November 5, 2018, HA SunStrong Capital LLC (‘‘HA SunStrong Parent’’), a subsidiary of Hannon

Armstrong, acquired 49% equity interests in SunStrong, a previously wholly owned subsidiary. We have
concluded that we are not the primary beneficiary of SunStrong and have recorded an equity investment in
SunStrong for our retained equity interests. The transaction resulted to a net loss on sale of our Residential Lease
Portfolio of $62.3 million for the year ended December 30, 2018, which was recorded within the SunPower
Energy Services Segment. The transaction decreased our long-term financing receivables, net and solar power
systems leased and to be leased by $388.2 million and $262.8 million, respectively, as of December 30, 2018.
We intend to sell the remainder of our residential lease portfolio to SunStrong. See Note 4. Business
Combinations and Divestitures for further details.

Divestment of Microinverter Business

On August 9, 2018, we completed the sale of certain assets and intellectual property related to the
production of microinverters to Enphase Energy, Inc. (‘‘Enphase’’) in exchange for $25.0 million in cash and
7.5 million shares of Enphase common stock (the ‘‘Closing Shares’’), pursuant to an Asset Purchase Agreement
(the ‘‘Purchase Agreement’’) entered into on June 12, 2018. We received the Closing Shares and $15.0 million
cash upon closing and receive the final $10.0 million cash payment of the purchase price on December 10, 2018.

In connection with the closing under the Purchase Agreement, we entered into a Master Supply Agreement

(the ‘‘MSA’’) with Enphase. Pursuant to the MSA, with certain exceptions, we have agreed to exclusively

62

procure module-level power electronics (‘‘MLPE’’) and alternating current (‘‘AC’’) cables from Enphase to meet
all of our needs for MLPE and AC cables for the manufacture and distribution of AC modules and discrete
MLPE system solutions for the U.S. residential market, including our current Equinox solution and any AC
module-based successor products. We have also agreed not to pair any third-party MLPE or AC cables with any
of our modules for use in the grid-tied U.S. residential market where an Enphase MLPE is qualified and certified
for such module. Under the MSA, we have agreed to use our best efforts to transition to purchasing other
identified Enphase products in accordance with the MSA as soon as possible following execution of the MSA.
The MSA does not otherwise restrict us from manufacturing, selling or purchasing any goods or products other
than as restricted by the exclusivity provisions under the MSA. In consideration of our exclusivity undertakings,
Enphase has agreed to prioritize and supply the applicable products under the MSA before supplying the same
products to third parties. The MSA also includes customary provisions relating to requirements forecasting,
warranty, liability, and quality assurance provisions. The initial term of the MSA is through December 31, 2023,
and the MSA term will automatically be extended for successive two-year periods unless either party provides
written notice of non-renewal. The MSA is subject to customary provisions permitting termination by the parties
in connection with specified events of default and subject to applicable cure periods.

Additionally, in connection with the closing under the Purchase Agreement, we also entered into a
Stockholders Agreement (the ‘‘Stockholders Agreement’’) with Enphase, pursuant to which we and Enphase
agreed to, among other things: (a) a six-month lock-up period and other transfer and resale restrictions applicable
to the Closing Shares; (b) registration rights with respect to the Closing Shares pursuant to which Enphase filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission a registration statement on Form S-3 to register for resale the
Closing Shares; (c) our right to appoint one person to the Enphase board of directors for so long as we own at
least 55% of the Closing Shares; (d) voting agreements that require us, subject to certain exceptions and so long
as we have the right to appoint one person to the Enphase board of directors, to cause the Closing Shares to be
present at Enphase stockholders meetings for quorum purposes and to vote the Closing Shares in favor of
Enphase’s board nominees and routine management proposals; and (e) stand-still provisions, that expire upon the
earlier of (y) the termination of the Stockholders Agreement, or (z) the date of the termination of our right to
appoint a director, our designee no longer serves on the Enphase board of directors and the MSA has been
terminated.

Acquisition of SolarWorld Americas

On April 16, 2018, we entered into a Sale and Purchase Agreement (the ‘‘Sale and Purchase Agreement’’)
pursuant to which we agreed to purchase all of SolarWorld AG’s shares of stock in SolarWorld Americas Inc.
(‘‘SolarWorld Americas’’), and SolarWorld Industries Deutschland GmbH’s partnership interest in SolarWorld
Industries America LP. On August 21, 2018, we terminated the Sale and Purchase Agreement and entered into an
Asset Purchase Agreement with SolarWorld Americas, pursuant to which we agreed to purchase certain assets of
SolarWorld Americas in exchange for consideration of $26.0 million, subject to certain closing and post-closing
adjustments and other contingent payments. In connection with the termination of the Sale and Purchase
Agreement, we have recognized an expense of $20.0 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2018 in sales,
general and administrative expense. On October 1, 2018, we completed the acquisition of certain assets of
SolarWorld Americas, including its Hillsboro, Oregon facility and a significant portion of its manufacturing
workforce of more than 200 employees. The purchase consideration consisted of $26.0 million in cash and
additional contingent consideration of approximately $4.1 million. The acquisition will provide us with U.S.
manufacturing capability to serve the U.S. market demand and SolarWorld Americas provides a platform for us
to implement our commercial P-Series solar panel manufacturing technology and selected R&D activities.

Components of Results of Operations

The following section describes certain line items in our Consolidated Statements of Operations:

Revenue

We recognize revenue from the following activities and transactions within our two operating segments:

•

Solar power components: revenue from the sale of solar panels and related solar system components,
primarily to dealers, system integrators and distributors, and in some cases on a multi-year, firm
commitment basis.

63

•

•

•

Solar power systems: revenue from the design, manufacture, and sale of high-performance rooftop and
ground-mounted solar power systems under construction and development agreements.

Residential leasing: revenue recognized on solar systems under lease agreements with residential
customers for terms of up to 20 years.

Other: revenue related to our solar power services and solutions, such as post-installation solar systems
monitoring and maintenance in connection with construction contracts and commercial PPAs.

For a discussion of how and when we recognize revenue, see ‘‘-Critical Accounting Estimates-Revenue

Recognition.‘‘

Cost of Revenue

We generally recognize our cost of revenue in the same period that we recognize related revenue. Our cost
of revenue fluctuates from period to period due to the mix of solar projects that we complete and the associated
revenue that we recognize, particularly for construction contracts and large-scale development projects. For a
discussion of how and when we recognize revenue, see ‘‘-Critical Accounting Estimates-Revenue Recognition.‘‘

The cost of solar panels is the single largest cost element in our cost of revenue. Our cost of solar panels

consists primarily of: (i) polysilicon, silicon ingots and wafers used in the production of solar cells, (ii) other
materials and chemicals including glass, frame, and backing, and (iii) direct labor costs and assembly costs.
Other cost of revenue associated with the construction of solar power systems includes real estate, mounting
systems, inverters, capitalized financing costs, and construction subcontract and dealer costs. Other factors that
contribute to our cost of revenue include salaries and personnel-related costs, depreciation, facilities related
charges, freight, as well as charges related to sales of raw material inventory and write-downs on certain solar
power development projects when costs exceed expected selling prices.

Gross Margin

Our gross margin each quarter is affected by a number of factors, including average selling prices for our

solar power components, the timing and nature of project revenue recognition, the types of projects in progress,
the gross margins estimated for those projects in progress, our product mix, our actual manufacturing costs, the
utilization rate of our solar cell manufacturing facilities, inventory net realizable value charges, impairment of
property, plant and equipment, losses on third party polysilicon sales, and actual overhead costs.

Research and Development

Research and development expense consists primarily of salaries and related personnel costs, depreciation of

equipment, and the cost of solar panel materials, various prototyping materials, and services used for the
development and testing of products. Research and development expense is reported net of contributions under
collaborative arrangements.

Sales, General and Administrative

Sales, general and administrative expense consists primarily of salaries and related personnel costs,

professional fees, bad debt expenses, and other selling and marketing expenses.

Restructuring

Restructuring expense in fiscal 2018, 2017 and 2016 consists mainly of costs associated with our August

2016, December 2016 and February 2018 restructuring plans aimed to realign our downstream investments,
optimize our supply chain, and reduce operating expenses in response to expected near-term challenges. Charges
in connection with these plans consist primarily of asset impairments, severance benefits, and lease and related
termination costs. For more information, see ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data-Notes to
Consolidated Financial Statements-Note 9. Restructuring.‘‘

Loss on sale and impairment of residential lease assets

In December 2017, our Board of Directors approved a future sale of a portion of our interest in the assets
and liabilities comprising our residential lease business (the ‘‘Residential Lease Portfolio’’) that resulted in the
sale of partial equity interests in SunStrong, our wholly owned subsidiary, to Hannon Armstrong on November 5,

64

2018 (See ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data-Notes to Consolidated Financial
Statements-Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestitures‘‘) and as a result of this triggering event, determined
it was necessary to evaluate the potential for impairment in our ability to recover the carrying amount of the
Residential Lease Portfolio. In accordance with such evaluation, we recognized a non-cash impairment charge on
our solar power systems leased and to be leased and an allowance for losses related to financing receivables. For
more information, see Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data-Notes to Consolidated Financial
Statements-Note 7. Leasing.’’

On November 5, 2018, we entered into a joint venture with HA SunStrong Capital LLC (‘‘HA SunStrong
Parent’’), an affiliate of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc., (‘‘Hannon Armstrong’’) to
acquire, operate, finance, and maintain a portfolio of residential rooftop or ground-mounted solar photovoltaic
electric generating systems (‘‘Solar Assets’’). Pursuant to the terms of the Purchase and Sale Agreement (the
‘‘PSA’’), we sold to HA SunStrong Parent, in exchange for consideration of $10.0 million, membership units
representing a 49.0% membership interest in SunStrong Capital Holdings, LLC (‘‘SunStrong’’), formerly our
wholly-owned subsidiary that historically held and controlled the assets and liabilities comprising our residential
lease business (the ‘‘Residential Lease Portfolio’’). In connection with the sale transactions, we recognized a
$62.3 million net loss on the sale within ‘‘Loss on sale and impairment of residential lease assets‘‘ in our
Consolidated Statements of Operations for the year ended December 30, 2018.

Following the closing of the PSA, we deconsolidated certain entities involved in our Residential Lease
Portfolio. For more information, see Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data-Notes to Consolidated
Financial Statements-Note 4. Business Combination and Divestitures.

Gain on Business Divestiture

In fiscal 2018, we recognized a gain from the divestment of our microinverter business to Enphase of

$59.3 million.

Other Income (Expense), Net

Interest expense primarily relates to: (i) amortization expense recorded for warrants issued to Total S.A. in
connection with the Liquidity Support Agreement, (ii) debt under our senior convertible debentures, (iii) fees for
our outstanding letters of credit; and (iv) other outstanding bank solar project debt. Other income (expense)
includes non-operating charges and benefits such as the impairment of goodwill and equity method investments.
Other, net includes gains or losses on foreign exchange and derivatives as well as gains or losses related to sales
and impairments of certain equity method investments.

Income Taxes

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the ‘‘Tax Act’’) was enacted on December 22, 2017. The Tax Act provided for

numerous significant tax law changes and modifications, including the reduction of the U.S. federal corporate
income tax rate from 35% to 21%, the requirement for companies to pay a one-time transition tax on earnings of
certain foreign subsidiaries that were previously tax deferred and creation of new taxes on certain foreign
sourced earnings. In accordance with accounting standard ASC 740, Income Taxes, companies are required to
recognize the tax law changes in the period of enactment. The SEC staff issued SAB 118 to address the
application of U.S. GAAP in situations when a registrant does not have the necessary information available,
prepared, or analyzed (including computations) in reasonable detail to complete the accounting for certain income
tax effects of the Tax Act. We provided a reasonable estimate of the effects of the Tax Act in our financial
statements in 2017. December 22, 2018 marked the end of the measurement period for purposes of SAB 118. We
completed our analysis based on legislative updates currently available and reported the changes to the
provisional amounts previously recorded which did not impact our income tax provision. We also confirmed that
the Tax Act does not impact our expectations of actual cash payments for income taxes in the foreseeable future.
For more information, see ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data-Notes to Consolidated
Financial Statements-Note 14. Income taxes.‘‘

Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for temporary differences between financial statement and

income tax bases of assets and liabilities. Valuation allowances are provided against deferred tax assets when
management cannot conclude that it is more likely than not that some portion or all deferred tax assets will be
realized.

65

We currently benefit from income tax holidays incentives in the Philippines in accordance with our

registration with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (‘‘PEZA’’). We also benefit from a tax holiday granted
by the Malaysian government to our former joint venture AUOSP (now our wholly-owned subsidiary, SunPower
Malaysia Manufacturing Sdn. Bhd.) subject to certain hiring, capital spending, and manufacturing requirements.
We continue to qualify to be taxed as an auxiliary company in Switzerland and benefit from a reduced tax rate.
For additional information see ‘‘-Note 1. The Company and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies’’ and
‘‘-Note 14. Income Taxes’’ under ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.‘‘

For financial reporting purposes, during periods when we were a subsidiary of Cypress, income tax expense

and deferred income tax balances were calculated as if we were a separate entity and had prepared our own
separate tax return. Effective with the closing of our public offering of common stock in June 2006, we were no
longer eligible to file federal and most state consolidated tax returns with Cypress. As of September 29, 2008,
Cypress completed a spin-off of all of its shares of our former class B common stock to its shareholders, so we
are no longer eligible to file any remaining state consolidated tax returns with Cypress. Under our tax sharing
agreement with Cypress, we agreed to pay Cypress for any federal and state income tax credit or net operating
loss carryforwards utilized in our federal and state tax returns in subsequent periods that originated while our
results were included in Cypress’ federal tax returns.

Equity in Earnings (Loss) of Unconsolidated Investees

Equity in earnings (loss) of unconsolidated investees represents our reportable share of earnings (loss)

generated from entities in which we own an equity interest accounted for under the equity method.

Net Loss Attributable to Noncontrolling Interests and Redeemable Noncontrolling Interests

We have entered into facilities with third-party investors under which the parties invest in entities that hold

SunPower solar power systems and leases with residential customers. We determined that we hold controlling
interests in these less-than-wholly-owned entities and have fully consolidated these entities as a result. The
investors were determined to hold noncontrolling interests, some of which are redeemable at the option of the
noncontrolling interest holder. We apply the hypothetical liquidation at book value method in allocating recorded
net income (loss) to each investor based on the change in the reporting period of the amount of net assets of the
entity to which each investor would be entitled to under the governing contractual arrangements in a liquidation
scenario.

On November 5, 2018, we sold a 49% of our interest in our residential lease assets portfolio to a joint

venture. As a result of this transaction, the partnerships holding such assets was deconsolidated and the
non-controlling interests that existed prior to this transaction were eliminated from our balance sheet. For
additional information, refer to ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data-Notes to Consolidated
Financial Statements-Note 4. Business Combination and Divestitures.‘‘

Results of Operations

Revenue

(In thousands, except percents)
SunPower Energy Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,045,614
1,069,010
SunPower Technologies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(388,539)
Intersegment eliminations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total Revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,726,085

2018

Fiscal Year

% of total
revenue

2017

% of total
revenue

2016

61% $ 910,206
62% 1,350,790
(23)% (466,949)
$1,794,047

51% $ 999,000
75% 2,000,174
(26)% (446,537)
$2,552,637

% of total
revenue
39%
78%
(17)%

1

See ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements—Note 18. Segments’’ in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report
on Form 10-K for further information regarding our other segments reporting adjustments, net.

Total Revenue:

Our total revenue decreased by 4% during fiscal 2018 as compared to fiscal 2017, primarily due to reduced

sales in our SunPower Technologies Segment in the U.S. and in Asia as result of our decision to cease the
development of large-scale solar power projects. We sold our remaining U.S. power plant development portfolio

66

in the third quarter of fiscal 2018. This was partially offset by an increase in our SunPower Energy Services
Segment in the proportion of capital leases placed in service relative to total leases placed in service under our
residential leasing program within the U.S., as well as stronger sales of solar power systems and components to
residential customers in all regions, and stronger sales of commercial solar power projects in all regions.

Our total revenue decreased by 30% during fiscal 2017 as compared to fiscal 2016, primarily due to a
decline in the revenue recognized in our SunPower Technologies Segment as we shift away from global power
plant development resulting in a decreased number of large-scale solar power projects in our project pipeline. We
recognized two smaller projects in the second half of fiscal 2017, compared to several larger utility-scale solar
power projects in fiscal 2016. Also contributing to the decrease in overall revenue was the decline in sales of
SunPower Energy Services Segment’s solar power systems and components to our residential customers in the
U.S. during fiscal 2017, partially offset by stronger sales of solar power systems and components to our
commercial customers, particularly in the U.S.

Concentrations:

Our SunPower Energy Services Segment as a percentage of total revenue recognized was 61% during fiscal

2018 as compared to 51% during fiscal 2017. The relative change in revenue for SunPower Energy Services
Segment as a percentage of total revenue recognized reflects the impact of a significant decline in revenue in
SunPower Technologies Segment as well as higher sales to residential customers plus stronger sales to
commercial customers. Our SunPower Technologies Segment as a percentage of total revenue recognized was
62% during fiscal 2018, as compared to 75% during fiscal 2017. The relative change in revenue for SunPower
Technologies Segment as a percentage of total revenue recognized reflects the impact of our decision to shift our
focus away from global power plant development with a resulting decrease in the number of large-scale solar
power projects in our project pipeline.

Our SunPower Energy Services Segment as a percentage of total revenue recognized was approximately
51% during fiscal 2017 as compared to 39% during fiscal 2016. The relative change in revenue for SunPower
Energy Services Segment as a percentage of total revenue recognized reflects the impact of a significant decline
in revenue in SunPower Technologies Segment as well as lower sales to residential customers partially offset by
stronger sales to commercial customers. Our SunPower Technologies Segment as a percentage of total revenue
recognized were approximately 75% during fiscal 2017, as compared to 78% during fiscal 2016. The relative
change in revenue for SunPower Technologies Segment as a percentage of total revenue recognized decreased as
we shifted our focus away from global power plant development resulting in a decreased number of large-scale
solar power projects in our pipeline during 2017. The table below represents our significant customers that
accounted for greater than 10% of total revenue in fiscal 2017 and fiscal 2016. No single customer accounted for
greater than 10% of total revenue for fiscal 2018.

(As a percentage of total revenue)

Significant Customer:
Actis GP LLP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
8point3 Energy Partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Southern Renewable Partnerships, LLC. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Business Segment:
Power Plant
Power Plant
Power Plant

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

2018

*
*
n/a

13% n/a

*
*

10%
15%

*

percentage is less than 10%.

SunPower Energy Services Segment Revenue:

Revenue from residential customers increased 27% during fiscal 2018 as compared to fiscal 2017, primarily

due to a higher volume in residential deals together with the increased proportion of capital leases placed in
service relative to total leases placed in service under our residential leasing program within the U.S., as well as
an increase in the sales of solar power components and systems to our residential customers in the U.S., partially
offset by lower third-party dealer cash transactions. Revenue from commercial customers decreased 23% during
fiscal 2018 as compared to fiscal 2017 primarily because of weaker sales of EPC and PPA commercial systems,
partially offset by stronger sales of solar power projects in all regions.

67

Revenue from residential customers decreased 17% during fiscal 2017 as compared to fiscal 2016, primarily
due to a decline in sales of solar power systems in U.S. residential market. Revenue from commercial customers
increased 44% during fiscal 2017 as compared to fiscal 2016, primarily because of stronger sales of solar power
systems.

SunPower Technologies Segment Revenue:

Revenue from power plant customers decreased 21% during fiscal 2018 as compared to fiscal 2017,
primarily due to divesting our U.S. power plant development portfolio during the third quarter of fiscal 2018
partially offset by increased sales of power plant development and solar power solutions sales in regions outside
of the U.S.

Revenue from power plant customers decreased 32% during fiscal 2017 as compared to fiscal 2016,
primarily due to substantial completion of certain large-scale solar power projects and the associated revenue
recognition in fiscal 2016, and the overall decrease in the number of large-scale solar power projects in our
pipeline during 2017 as we shift away from global power plant development. In fiscal 2017, we sold the
111 MW El Pelicano and 71 MW Gala projects as compared to several larger utility-scale projects in fiscal 2016.

Cost of Revenue

(In thousands, except percents)

2018

% Change

Fiscal Year
2017

% Change

2016

SunPower Energy Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 889,410
1,496,909
SunPower Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(363,153)
Intersegment eliminations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

8% $ 820,628
5% 1,430,539
(17)% (438,475)

—% $ 818,557
(26)% 1,940,752
(428,491)

2%

Total cost of revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,023,166

12% $1,812,692

(22)% $2,330,818

Total cost of revenue as a percentage of total revenue. .
Total gross margin percentage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

117%
(17)%

101%
(1)%

91%
9%

1

See ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements—Note 18. Segments’’ in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report
on Form 10-K for further information regarding our other segments reporting adjustments, net.

Total Cost of Revenue:

Our total cost of revenue increased 12% during fiscal 2018 as compared to fiscal 2017, primarily as a result

of a non-cash impairment charge of $355.1 million, total tariffs charge of approximately $42.5 million, higher
volume in U.S. residential deals, and increased cost in solar power solutions in our sales to commercial
customers. The increase was partially offset by lower project cost in our sales to power plant following our
decision to cease the development of large-scale power projects. During fiscal 2018, we incurred a write-down of
$24.7 million on certain solar development projects which we sold during the third quarter of fiscal 2018. In
addition, we incurred charges totaling $31.6 million recorded in connection with the contracted sale of raw
material inventory to third parties during 2018.

In the second quarter of fiscal 2018, we announced our plan to transition our corporate structure into
upstream and downstream business units, and our long-term strategy to upgrade our integrated back connectivity,
or IBC, technology to our NGT, or Maxeon 5, as we continue to face a challenging macroeconomic environment
surrounding the solar industry. Accordingly, we expect to upgrade the equipment associated with our
manufacturing operations for the production of Maxeon 5 over the next several years. In connection with these
planned upstream business unit changes that will impact the utilization of our manufacturing assets, together with
continued pricing challenges in the solar industry as well as the then uncertainties associated with the
Section 201 trade case, we determined that certain indicators of asset impairment existed and therefore we
performed a recoverability test by estimating future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated from
the use of these assets groups. Based on the test performed, we determined that our estimate of future
undiscounted net cash flows was insufficient to recover the carrying value of the upstream business unit’s assets
and consequently performed an impairment analysis by comparing the carrying value of the asset group to its
estimated fair value. In accordance with this determination, we recognized a non-cash impairment charge of

68

$355.1 million in ‘‘Cost of revenue‘‘ on the Consolidated Statements of Operations for the year ended December
30, 2018. The non-cash impairment charge in ‘‘Cost of revenue‘‘ was allocated to our SunPower Energy Services
Segment and SunPower Technologies Segment for the year ended December 30, 2018.

Our total cost of revenue decreased 22% during fiscal 2017 as compared to fiscal 2016, primarily as a result

of a decline in volume of large scale project sales, offset by the charge recorded in fiscal 2017 in connection
with a legal settlement related to certain tax indemnification obligations pertaining to SunPower Systems’ sale of
a large California solar project to NRG Solar LLC, now known as NRG Renew LLC (‘‘NRG’’), charges totaling
$72.5 million recorded in connection with the contracted sale of raw material inventory to third parties, charges
totaling $38.2 million in connection with the sale of raw material to suppliers, and additional write-downs
totaling $8.3 million on certain solar power development projects in fiscal 2017, which were the result of our
above-market cost of polysilicon and lower expected selling prices of our projects. We also experienced an
increase to cost of revenue due to $8.3 million of inventory write-downs as a result of lower net realizable value
driven by lower pricing assumptions, higher manufacturing costs, higher third-party cell costs as well as
pre-operating costs associated with the ramp of our P-Series product.

Gross Margin

SunPower Energy Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SunPower Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Fiscal Year
2017

10%
(6)%

2018

15%
(40)%

2016

18%
3%

SunPower Energy Services Segment Gross Margin:

Gross margin for our SunPower Energy Services Segment increased 5 percentage points during fiscal
2018 as compared to fiscal 2017. Gross margin improved primarily due to a higher volume in residential deals
together with the increased proportion of capital leases placed in service on residential sales offset by
$196.3 million of non-cash impairment charge on property, plant and equipment combined with lower margin on
sales to residential customers and higher cost incurred related to solar power solutions deals.

Gross margin for our SunPower Energy Services Segment decreased 8 percentage points during fiscal
2017 as compared to fiscal 2016. Gross margin on residential sales decreased 4 percentage points during fiscal
2017 as compared to fiscal 2016 primarily due to declining average selling prices in North America. Gross
margin on commercial sales decreased 3 percentage points during fiscal 2017 as compared to fiscal 2016
primarily a result of pricing pressures on sales of solar power systems due to factors such as an increase in the
internal rate of return expected by our commercial customers in light of market conditions. In addition, there
were charges of $24.7 million in connection with the contracted sale of raw material inventory to third parties,
and $4.6 million in connection with the sale of raw material to suppliers, both of which were the result of our
above-market cost of polysilicon and the lower expected selling prices of our solar projects during fiscal 2017.

SunPower Technologies Segment Gross Margin:

Gross margin for our SunPower Technologies Segment decreased 34 percentage points during fiscal 2018 as

compared to fiscal 2017, primarily as a result of the $158.8 million of non-cash impairment charge of property,
plant and equipment, and write-downs totaling $22.7 million on certain solar development projects during the
first quarter of fiscal 2018, partially offset by decreased product costs driven by cost savings initiatives we
implemented, and a reduction in revenue during 2018 in connection with a one-off legal settlement related to
NRG in the first quarter of fiscal 2017.

Gross margin for our SunPower Technologies Segment decreased 8 percentage points during fiscal 2017 as

compared to fiscal 2016, primarily because we experienced pressure on project pricing due to increased global
competition and other factors, including an increase in the internal rate of return expected by our customers in
light of market conditions. In addition, we had a $33.6 million charge in connection with the sale of raw material
to suppliers, $30.7 million charge in connection with the contracted sales of raw material inventory to third
parties and additional write-downs totaling $8.3 million on certain solar power development projects in fiscal
2017, all as a result of our above-market cost of polysilicon and lower expected selling prices of our projects.
Furthermore, we recorded a $8.3 million charge to write-down inventory to its net realizable value as a result of

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lower pricing assumptions, higher manufacturing costs, increased third-party cell costs as well as pre-operating
costs associated with the ramp of our P-Series product. The decrease in gross margin was also a result of the
charge to cost of revenue impacting our Power Plant Segment which we recorded in the first quarter of fiscal
2017 in connection with a legal settlement related to NRG.

Research and Development (‘‘R&D’’)

(In thousands, except percents)

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

R&D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
As a percentage of revenue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$81,705

$82,247

116,889

5%

5%

5%

R&D expense decreased by $0.5 million during fiscal 2018 as compared to fiscal 2017. The decrease was
primarily due to a decrease in labor costs as a result of reductions in headcount and salary expenses driven by
our February 2018 restructuring plan. The decrease was partially offset by the impairment of property, plant and
equipment related to R&D facilities of $12.8 million.

R&D expense decreased by $34.6 million during fiscal 2017 as compared to fiscal 2016, primarily due to a
decrease in labor costs as a result of reductions in headcount and salary expenses driven by our August 2016 and
December 2016 restructuring plans, as well as decreases in other expenses such as materials, consulting and
outside services as we have completed certain development activities.

Sales, General and Administrative (‘‘SG&A’’)

(In thousands, except percents)

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

SG&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
As a percentage of revenue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$260,111

$278,645

$332,757

15%

15%

13%

SG&A expense decreased by $18.5 million during fiscal 2018 as compared to fiscal 2017 primarily due to

reductions in headcount and salary expenses driven by our February 2018 restructuring plan and ongoing cost
reduction efforts.

SG&A expense decreased by $54.1 million during fiscal 2017 as compared to fiscal 2016, primarily due to
decreased marketing activity in North America and through digital media, a decrease in labor costs as a result of
reductions in headcount and salary expenses driven by our August 2016 and December 2016 restructuring plans,
a reduction in legal costs due to the settlement of certain legal proceedings, and a decrease in other non-cash
charges.

Restructuring Charges

(In thousands, except percents)

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

Restructuring charges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
As a percentage of revenue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$17,497

$21,045

$207,190

1%

1%

8%

Restructuring charges decreased $3.5 million during fiscal 2018 as compared to fiscal 2017, primarily
because we have incurred slightly lower severance and benefits charges in connection with the February 2018
restructuring plan compared to the facilities related expenses in the prior periods in connection with our
December 2016 restructuring plan. See ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements—Note 9. Restructuring’’ in the Notes to
the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information regarding our
restructuring plans. As a result of the February 2018 restructuring plan, we expected to generate annual cost
savings of approximately $20.5 million in operating expenses, which are expected to be cash savings primarily
from a reduction in global workforce, and the effects commenced in the first quarter of fiscal 2018. Actual
savings realized may, however, differ if our assumptions are incorrect or if other unanticipated events occur.

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Loss (gain) on sale and impairment of residential lease assets

(In thousands, except percents)

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

Loss (gain) on sale and impairment of residential lease assets. . . . . . . . . .
As a percentage of revenue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$251,984

$624,335

15%

35%

2016

$(7,263)
—%

In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, in conjunction with our efforts to generate more available liquid funds
in the near-term, we made the decision to sell a portion of our interest in our Residential Lease Portfolio. As a
result, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, we determined it was necessary to evaluate the potential for
impairment in our ability to recover the carrying amount of our Residential Lease Portfolio. As a result of our
evaluation, we recognized non-cash impairment charges of $624.3 million within ‘‘Loss on sale and impairment
of residential lease assets‘‘ on the Consolidated Statements of Operations for the year ended December 31, 2017.
In fiscal 2018, we continued recording additional non-cash impairment charges through the sale of partial equity
interests in SunStrong, our wholly-owned subsidiary, to Hannon Armstrong in November 2018 - See Note 4.
Business Combinations and Divestitures for further details. During the year ended December 30, 2018, we
recognized, in aggregate, loss on sale and impairment of residential lease assets of $252.0 million on the
Consolidated Statements of Operations for fiscal 2018.

Gain recorded in fiscal 2016 relates to the sale of residential lease assets as a result of adopting ASC 606 on

January 1, 2018, using the full retrospective method, which required us to restate each prior period presented.

Gain on business divestiture

(In thousands, except percents)

Gain on business divestiture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
As a percentage of revenue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2018

$(59,347)

(3)%

Fiscal Year
2017

$—
—%

2016

$—
—%

In fiscal 2018, we recognized a gain from the divestment of our microinverter business to Enphase of

$59.4 million.

Other Expense, Net

(In thousands, except percents)

Interest income . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interest expense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other Income (expense):

Gain on settlement of preexisting relationships in connection with

acquisition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loss on equity method investment in connection with acquisition . . . .
Goodwill impairment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

$

3,057
(108,011)

$

2,100
(90,288)

$

2,652
(61,273)

—
—
—
55,314

— 203,252
(90,946)
—
— (147,365)
(6,958)

(87,645)

Other expense, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$ (49,640)

$(175,833) $(100,638)

As a percentage of revenue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(3)%

(10)%

(4)%

Interest expense increased $17.7 million in fiscal 2018 as compared to fiscal 2017 primarily due to new debt

and new commercial sale-leaseback arrangements.

Interest expense increased $29.0 million in fiscal 2017 as compared to fiscal 2016 primarily due to new debt

and new commercial sale-leaseback arrangements.

Other income (expense), net improved by $143.0 million in fiscal 2018 as compared to fiscal 2017. The
change is primarily due to a $54.2 million gain on the sale of our equity method investments in fiscal 2018, a
$73.0 million impairment charge in fiscal 2017 in our 8point3 Energy Partners LP equity investment balance due
to the adoption of ASC 606 which materially increased the investment balance and consequently, led to the
recognition of an other-than-temporary impairment in the first quarter of fiscal 2017.

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Other Income (expense) worsened by $45.6 million in fiscal 2017 as compared to fiscal 2016. The change is

primarily related to higher charges in fiscal 2017 related to the adoption of ASC 606 of $64.6 million compared
to fiscal 2016. In addition, fiscal 2016 was impacted by one-time charges of $35.1 million in fiscal 2016 related
to our AUOSP acquisition, $147.4 million goodwill impairment, and $90.9 million impairment of our equity
method investment in AUOSP, all of which occurred in the third quarter of fiscal 2016, and $8.6 million
write-down in 2016 of one of our equity method investments, which were partially offset in fiscal 2016 by
$203.3 million gain on settlement regarding an acquisition.

Income Taxes

(In thousands, except percents)

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

Benefit from (provision for) income taxes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
As a percentage of revenue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$(1,010)

$3,944

$(7,318)

—%

—%

—%

In the year ended December 30, 2018, our income tax provision of $1.0 million on a loss before income

taxes and equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees of $898.7 million was primarily due to the related tax
expense in foreign jurisdictions that were profitable, offset by tax benefit related to release of valuation
allowance in a foreign jurisdiction and tax reserves due to lapse of statute of limitations. The income tax benefit
of $3.9 million in the year ended December 31, 2017 on a loss before income taxes and equity in earnings of
unconsolidated investees of $1,200.8 million, was primarily due to the related tax effects of the carryback of
fiscal 2016 net operating losses to fiscal 2015 domestic tax returns, partially offset by tax expense in profitable
jurisdictions.

On December 22, 2017, the U.S. enacted the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the ‘‘Tax Act’’), which
significantly changed U.S. tax law. The Tax Act lowered our U.S. statutory federal income tax rate from 35% to
21% effective January 1, 2018, while also imposing a deemed repatriation tax on deferred foreign income. The
Tax Act also created a new minimum ‘‘base erosion and anti-abuse tax’’ on certain foreign payments made by a
U.S. parent company, and the ‘‘global intangible low-taxed income’’ rules which tax foreign subsidiary income
earned over a 10% rate of routine return on tangible business assets.

In accordance with ASC 740 ‘‘Income Taxes,’’ companies are required to recognize the tax law changes in

the period of enactment. The SEC staff issued SAB 118 to address the application of U.S. GAAP in situations
when a registrant does not have the necessary information available, prepared, or analyzed (including
computations) in reasonable detail to complete the accounting for certain income tax effects of the Act. We
provided a reasonable estimate of the effects of the Tax Act in our financial statements in 2017. December 22,
2018 marked the end of the measurement period for purposes of SAB 118. We completed our analysis based on
legislative updates currently available and reported the changes to the provisional amounts previously recorded
which did not impact our income tax provision. We also confirmed that the Act does not impact our expectations
of actual cash payments for income taxes in the foreseeable future. For more information, see ‘‘Item 8. Financial
Statements and Supplementary Data-Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements-Note 14. Income taxes.‘‘

We record a valuation allowance to reduce our deferred tax assets in the U.S., Malta, South Africa and
Spain to the amount that is more likely than not to be realized. In assessing the need for a valuation allowance,
we consider historical levels of income, expectations and risks associated with the estimates of future taxable
income and ongoing prudent and feasible tax planning strategies. In the event we determine that we would be
able to realize additional deferred tax assets in the future in excess of the net recorded amount, or if we
subsequently determine that realization of an amount previously recorded is unlikely, we would record an
adjustment to the deferred tax asset valuation allowance, which would change income tax in the period of
adjustment.

On July 27, 2015, in Altera Corp. v. Commissioner, the U.S. Tax Court issued an opinion related to the
treatment of stock-based compensation expense in an intercompany cost-sharing arrangement. On July 24, 2018,
the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal reversed the Tax Court’s decision made in year 2015. On August 7, 2018, the
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal withdrew the issued decision to allow for additional time to confer on the appeal.
We confirmed that there were no changes to the decision and will continue to monitor for ongoing developments
and potential impacts to our consolidated financial statements.

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Equity in Earnings of Unconsolidated Investees

(In thousands, except percents)

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

Equity in earnings (loss) of unconsolidated investees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
As a percentage of revenue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$(17,815)

$25,938

$14,295

(1)%

1%

1%

Our equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees decreased $43.8 million in fiscal 2018 as compared to

fiscal 2017, primarily driven by the activities of the 8point3 Group, which we divested in June 2018. As a result
of this transaction, we received, after the payment of fees and expenses, merger proceeds of approximately
$359.9 million in cash and no longer directly or indirectly owns any equity interests in the 8point3 Group. In
connection with the sale, we recognized a $34.4 million gain within ‘‘Other, net‘‘ in ‘‘Other income (expense),
net‘‘ of our Consolidated Statements of Operations for the year ended December 30, 2018.

Our equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees increased $11.6 million in fiscal 2017 as compared to

fiscal 2016, primarily driven by the activities of the 8point3 Group.

Net Loss Attributable to Noncontrolling Interests and Redeemable Noncontrolling Interests

(In thousands)

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

Net loss attributable to noncontrolling interests and redeemable

noncontrolling interests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$106,405

$241,747

$72,780

We have entered into facilities with third-party tax equity investors under which the investors invest in a

structure known as a partnership flip. We determined that we hold controlling interests in these
less-than-wholly-owned entities and therefore we have fully consolidated these entities. We apply the HLBV
method in allocating recorded net income (loss) to each investor based on the change in the reporting period, of
the amount of net assets of the entity to which each investor would be entitled to under the governing contractual
arrangements in a liquidation scenario.

In fiscal 2018 and 2017, we attributed $106.4 million and $241.7 million, respectively, of net losses

primarily to the third-party investors as a result of allocating certain assets, including tax credits and accelerated
tax depreciation benefits, to the investors. The $135.3 million decrease in net loss attributable to noncontrolling
interests and redeemable noncontrolling interests is primarily attributable to the decrease in allocated portion of
the impairment charge related to our residential lease assets, which was $9.6 million and $150.6 million in fiscal
2018 and 2017, respectively, (see ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements-Note 7. Leasing’’), and the deconsolidation
following the sale of a portion of our interest in the residential lease assets portfolio resulting in less in net loss
allocation to noncontrolling interests for the period after deconsolidation until December 30, 2018 (see ‘‘Item 8.
Financial Statements-Note 4. Business Combination and Divestitures’’), partially offset by an increase in total
number of leases placed in service under new and existing facilities with third-party investors.

In fiscal 2017 and 2016, we attributed $241.7 million and $72.8 million, respectively, of net losses primarily

to the third-party investors as a result of allocating certain assets, including tax credits and accelerated tax
depreciation benefits, to the investors. The $168.9 million increase in net loss attributable to noncontrolling
interests and redeemable noncontrolling interests is primarily attributable to the allocated portion of the
impairment charge related to our residential lease assets of $150.6 million (see ‘‘Item 1. Financial
Statements—Note 7. Leasing’’), and an increase in total number of leases placed in service under new and
existing facilities with third-party investors.

Critical Accounting Estimates

We prepare our consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting
principles, which requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts of assets,
liabilities, revenues, and expenses recorded in our financial statements. We base our estimates on historical
experience and on various other assumptions that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances, the
results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are
not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different
assumptions and conditions. In addition to our most critical estimates discussed below, we also have other key

73

accounting policies that are less subjective and, therefore, judgments involved in their application would not have
a material impact on our reported results of operations (See ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary
Data-Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements-Note 1. Organization and Summary of Significant Accounting
Policies’’).

Revenue Recognition

Module and Component Sales

We sell our solar panels and balance of system components primarily to dealers, system integrators and
distributors, and recognizes revenue at a point in time when control of such products transfers to the customer,
which generally occurs upon shipment or delivery depending on the terms of the contracts with the customer.
There are no rights of return. Other than standard warranty obligations, there are no significant post-shipment
obligations (including installation, training or customer acceptance clauses) with any of our customers that could
have an impact on revenue recognition. Our revenue recognition policy is consistent across all geographic areas.

Solar Power System Sales and Engineering, Procurement, and Construction Services

We design, manufacture, and sell rooftop and ground-mounted solar power systems under construction and

development agreements. EPC projects governed by customer contracts that require us to deliver functioning
solar power systems are generally completed within three to twelve months from commencement of construction.
Construction on large projects may be completed within eighteen to thirty-six months, depending on the size and
location. We recognize revenue from EPC services over time as our performance creates or enhances an energy
generation asset controlled by the customer. We use an input method based on cost incurred as we believe that
this method most accurately reflects our progress toward satisfaction of the performance obligation. Under this
method, revenue arising from fixed-price construction contracts is recognized as work is performed based on the
ratio of costs incurred to date to the total estimated costs at completion of the performance obligations.

Incurred costs include all direct material, labor and subcontract costs, and those indirect costs related to

contract performance, such as indirect labor, supplies, and tools. Project material costs are included in incurred
costs when the project materials have been installed by being permanently attached or fitted to the solar power
system as required by the project’s engineering design. Cost-based input methods of revenue recognition require
us to make estimates of net contract revenues and costs to complete the projects. In making such estimates,
significant judgment is required to evaluate assumptions related to the amount of net contract revenues, including
the impact of any performance incentives, liquidated damages, and other payments to customers. Significant
judgment is also required to evaluate assumptions related to the costs to complete the projects, including
materials, labor, contingencies, and other system costs. If the estimated total costs on any contract are greater
than the net contract revenues, we recognize the entire estimated loss in the period the loss becomes known and
can be reasonably estimated.

For sales of solar power systems in which we sell a controlling interest in the project to a customer, we
recognize all of the revenue for the consideration received, including the fair value of the noncontrolling interest
obtained or retained, and in circumstances where we maintain significant influence over the retained
noncontrolling interest, we defer any profit associated with our retained equity stake through ‘‘Equity in earnings
of unconsolidated investees.’’ The deferred profit is subsequently recognized on a straight-line basis over the
useful life of the underlying system. We estimate the fair value of the noncontrolling interest using an income
approach based on the valuation of the entire solar project. Further, in situations where we sell membership
interests in our project entities to third-party tax equity investors in return for tax benefits (generally federal
and/or state investment tax credits and accelerated depreciation), we view the sale of the rights to tax attributes
associated with ownership of the underlying solar systems as a distinct performance obligation in the scope of
ASC 606 because it is an output of our ordinary activities consistent with the guidance in ASC 606-10-15-3. The
sale of the rights to the tax attributes is recognized at a point in time when the customers are eligible to claim
the tax benefits, generally at substantial completion of the solar power projects. The fair value of the tax
attributes generally begins with an independent third-party appraisal which supports the eligible cost basis for the
qualifying solar energy property. In certain circumstances, we have provided indemnification to customers and
investors under which we are contractually obligated to compensate these parties for losses they may suffer as a
result of reduction in tax benefits received under the investment tax credit and U.S. Treasury Department’s cash
grant programs. Refer to ‘‘Note 10. Commitments and Contingencies’’ for further details.

74

Our arrangements may contain clauses such as contingent repurchase options, delay liquidated damages or

early performance bonus, most favorable pricing, or other provisions that can either increase or decrease the
transaction price. These variable amounts generally are awarded upon achievement of certain performance
metrics or milestones. Variable consideration is estimated at each measurement date at its most likely amount to
the extent that it is probable that a significant reversal of cumulative revenue recognized will not occur and
true-ups are applied prospectively as such estimates change.

Changes in estimates for sales of systems and EPC services occur for a variety of reasons, including but not

limited to (i) construction plan accelerations or delays, (ii) product cost forecast changes, (iii) change orders, or
(iv) changes in other information used to estimate costs. The cumulative effect of revisions to transaction prices
or input cost estimates are recorded in the period in which the revisions to estimates are identified and the
amounts can be reasonably estimated.

Operations and Maintenance

We offer our customers various levels of post-installation O&M services with the objective of optimizing
our customers’ electrical energy production over the life of the system. We determine that the post-installation
systems monitoring and maintenance qualifies as a separate performance obligation. Post-installation monitoring
and maintenance is deferred at the time the contract is executed, based on the estimate of selling price on a
standalone basis, and is recognized to revenue over time as customers receive and consume benefits of such
services. The non-cancellable term of the O&M contracts are typically 90 days for commercial and residential
customers and 180 days for power plant customers.

We typically provide a system output performance warranty, separate from our standard solar panel product

warranty, to customers that have subscribed to our post-installation O&M services. In connection with system
output performance warranties, we agree to pay liquidated damages in the event the system does not perform to
the stated specifications, with certain exclusions. The warranty excludes system output shortfalls attributable to
force majeure events, customer curtailment, irregular weather, and other similar factors. In the event that the
system output falls below the warrantied performance level during the applicable warranty period, and provided
that the shortfall is not caused by a factor that is excluded from the performance warranty, the warranty provides
that we will pay the customer an amount based on the value of the shortfall of energy produced relative to the
applicable warrantied performance level. Such liquidated damages represent a form of variable consideration and
are estimated at contract inception and updated at each reporting date and recognized over time as customers
receive and consume the benefits of the O&M services.

Shipping and Handling Costs

We account for shipping and handling activities related to contracts with customers as costs to fulfill our

promise to transfer goods and, accordingly, records such costs in cost of revenue.

Taxes Collected from Customers and Remitted to Governmental Authorities

We exclude from our measurement of transaction prices all taxes assessed by governmental authorities that

are both (i) imposed on and concurrent with a specific revenue-producing transaction and (ii) collected from
customers. Accordingly, such tax amounts are not included as a component of revenue or cost of revenue.

Residential Leases

We offer a solar lease program, in partnership with third-party financial institutions, which allows our
residential customers to obtain SunPower systems under lease agreements for terms of up to 20 years. Leases are
classified as either operating- or sales-type leases in accordance with the relevant accounting guidelines, which
involve making a variety of estimates, including the fair value and residual value of leased solar power systems.
Changes in these estimates can have a significant impact on the related accounting results, including the relative
proportion of leases classified as operating- or sales-type leases.

For those systems classified as sales-type leases, the net present value of the minimum lease payments, net

of executory costs, is recognized as revenue when the lease is placed in service. This net present value of the
minimum lease payments as well as the net present value of the residual value of the lease at termination are

75

recorded as financing receivables in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. The difference between the initial net
amounts and the gross amounts are amortized to revenue over the lease term using the interest method. The
residual values of our solar systems are determined at the inception of the lease by applying an estimated system
fair value at the end of the lease term.

For those systems classified as operating leases, rental revenue is recognized, net of executory costs, on a

straight-line basis over the term of the lease.

Impairment of Residential Lease Assets

We evaluate our long-lived assets, including property, plant and equipment, solar power systems leased and

to be leased, and other intangible assets with finite lives, for impairment whenever events or changes in
circumstances indicate that the carrying value of such assets may not be recoverable. Factors considered
important that could result in an impairment review include significant under-performance relative to expected
historical or projected future operating results, significant changes in the manner of use of acquired assets, and
significant negative industry or economic trends. Our impairment evaluation of long-lived assets includes an
analysis of estimated future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by the assets over their
remaining estimated useful lives. If our estimate of future undiscounted net cash flows is insufficient to recover
the carrying value of the assets over the remaining estimated useful lives, we record an impairment loss in the
amount by which the carrying value of the assets exceeds the fair value. Fair value is generally measured based
on either quoted market prices, if available, or discounted cash flow analysis.

Financing receivables are generated by solar power systems leased to residential customers under sales-type

leases. Financing receivables represent gross minimum lease payments to be received from customers over a
period commensurate with the remaining lease term and the system’s estimated residual value, net of unearned
income and allowance for estimated losses. Our evaluation of the recoverability of these financing receivables is
based on evaluation of the likelihood, based on current information and events, and whether we will be able to
collect all amounts due according to the contractual terms of the underlying lease agreements. In accordance with
this evaluation, we recognize an allowance for losses on financing receivables based on our estimate of the
amount equal to the probable losses net of recoveries. The combination of the leased solar power systems
discussed in the preceding paragraph together with the lease financing receivables is referred to as the
‘‘Residential Lease Portfolio.‘‘

In conjunction with our efforts to generate more available liquid funds and simplify our balance sheets, we

made the decision to sell a portion of our interest in the Residential Lease Portfolio and engaged an external
investment banker to assist with our related marketing efforts in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017. As a result of
these events, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, we determined it was necessary to evaluate the potential for
impairment in our ability to recover the carrying amount of our Residential Lease Portfolio.

In proceeding with the impairment evaluation, we determined that financing receivables related to sales-type

leases, which were previously classified as held for investment, qualified as held for sale based on our decision
to sell our interest in the Residential Lease Portfolio. Accordingly, we recognized an allowance for estimated
losses for the amount by which cost exceeded fair value. In addition, we reviewed the cash flows we would
expect to derive from the underlying asset that we recover from the lessees (unguaranteed residual value). Due to
our planned sale of our Residential Lease Portfolio and based on the indication of value received, we determined
that the decline in estimated residual value was other than temporary.

We performed a recoverability test for the assets subject to operating leases by estimating future
undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by the assets, based on our own specific alternative
courses of action under consideration. The alternative courses were either to sell or refinance the assets subject to
operating leases, or hold the assets until the end of their previously estimated useful lives. Upon consideration of
the alternatives, we considered the probability of selling the assets subject to operating leases and factored the
indicative value obtained from a prospective purchaser together with the probability of retaining the assets and
the estimated future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by holding the assets until the end of
their previously estimated useful lives in the recoverability test. Based on the evaluation performed, we
determined that as of December 31, 2017, the estimate of future undiscounted net cash flows was insufficient to
recover the carrying value of the assets subject to operating leases, and consequently performed an impairment
analysis by comparing the carrying value of the assets to their estimated fair value.

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We computed the fair value for the financing receivables associated with sales-type leases and long-lived

assets subject to operating leases using consistent methodology and assumptions that market participants would
use in their estimates of fair value. The estimates and judgments about future cash flows were made using an
income approach defined as Level 3 inputs under fair value measurement standards. The impairment evaluation
was based on the income approach (specifically a discounted cash flow analysis) and included assumptions for,
among others, forecasted contractual lease income, lease expenses, residual value of these lease assets, long-term
discount rates, and forecasted default rates over the lease term and discount rates, some of which require
significant judgment by us.

Allowance for Doubtful Accounts and Sales Returns

We maintain allowances for doubtful accounts for estimated losses resulting from the inability of our
customers to make required payments. A considerable amount of judgment is required to assess the likelihood of
the ultimate realization of accounts receivable. We make our estimates of the collectability of our accounts
receivable by analyzing historical bad debts, specific customer creditworthiness and current economic trends.

In addition, at the time revenue is recognized from the sale of solar panels and balance of system

components, we record estimates for sales returns which reduce revenue. These estimates are based on historical
sales returns and analysis of credit memo data, among other known factors.

Product Warranties

We generally provide a 25-year standard warranty for our solar panels that we manufacture for defects in

materials and workmanship. The warranty provides that we will repair or replace any defective solar panels
during the warranty period. In addition, we pass through to customers’ long-term warranties from the original
equipment manufacturers of certain system components, such as inverters. Warranties of 25 years from solar
panel suppliers are standard in the solar industry, while certain system components carry warranty periods
ranging from five to 20 years.

In addition, we generally warrant our workmanship on installed systems for periods ranging up to 25 years

and also provide a separate system output performance warranty to customers that have subscribed to our
post-installation monitoring and maintenance services which expires upon termination of the post-installation
monitoring and maintenance services related to the system. The warrantied system output performance level
varies by system depending on the characteristics of the system and the negotiated agreement with the customer,
and the level declines over time to account for the expected degradation of the system. Actual system output is
typically measured annually for purposes of determining whether warrantied performance levels have been met.
The warranty excludes system output shortfalls attributable to force majeure events, customer curtailment,
irregular weather, and other similar factors. In the event that the system output falls below the warrantied
performance level during the applicable warranty period, and provided that the shortfall is not caused by a factor
that is excluded from the performance warranty, the warranty provides that we will pay the customer a liquidated
damage based on the value of the shortfall of energy produced relative to the applicable warrantied performance
level.

We maintain reserves to cover the expected costs that could result from these warranties. Our expected costs

are generally in the form of product replacement or repair. Warranty reserves are based on our best estimate of
such costs and are recognized as a cost of revenue. We continuously monitor product returns for warranty
failures and maintain a reserve for the related warranty expenses based on various factors including historical
warranty claims, results of accelerated lab testing, field monitoring, vendor reliability estimates, and data on
industry averages for similar products. Due to the potential for variability in these underlying factors, the
difference between our estimated costs and our actual costs could be material to our consolidated financial
statements. If actual product failure rates or the frequency or severity of reported claims differ from our estimates
or if there are delays in our responsiveness to outages, we may be required to revise our estimated warranty
liability. Historically, warranty costs have been within management’s expectations.

Inventories

Inventories are accounted for on a first-in-first-out basis and are valued at the lower of cost or net realizable

value. We evaluate the realizability of our inventories, including future purchase commitments under fixed-price
long-term supply agreements, based on assumptions about expected demand and market conditions. Our

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assumption of expected demand is developed based on our analysis of bookings, sales backlog, sales pipeline,
market forecast and competitive intelligence. Our assumption of expected demand is compared to available
inventory, production capacity, future polysilicon purchase commitments, available third-party inventory and
growth plans. Our factory production plans, which drive materials requirement planning, are established based on
our assumptions of expected demand. We respond to reductions in expected demand by temporarily reducing
manufacturing output and adjusting expected valuation assumptions as necessary. In addition, expected demand
by geography has changed historically due to changes in the availability and size of government mandates and
economic incentives.

We evaluate the terms of our long-term inventory purchase agreements with suppliers for the procurement of

polysilicon, ingots, wafers, and solar cells and establish accruals for estimated losses on adverse purchase
commitments as necessary, such as lower of cost or net realizable value adjustments, forfeiture of advanced
deposits and liquidated damages. Obligations related to non-cancellable purchase orders for inventories match
current and forecasted sales orders that will consume these ordered materials and actual consumption of these
ordered materials are compared to expected demand regularly. We anticipate total obligations related to long-term
supply agreements for inventories will be realized because quantities are less than management’s expected
demand for its solar power products over a period of years; however, if raw materials inventory balances
temporarily exceed near-term demand, we may elect to sell such inventory to third parties to optimize working
capital needs. In addition, because the purchase prices required by our long-term polysilicon agreements are
significantly higher than current market prices for similar materials, if we are not able to profitably utilize this
material in our operations or elect to sell near-term excess, we may incur additional losses. Other market
conditions that could affect the realizable value of our inventories and are periodically evaluated by management
include the aging of inventories on hand, historical inventory turnover ratio, anticipated sales price, new product
development schedules, the effect new products might have on the sale of existing products, product
obsolescence, customer concentrations, the current market price of polysilicon as compared to the price in our
fixed-price arrangements, and product merchantability, among other factors. If, based on assumptions about
expected demand and market conditions, we determine that the cost of inventories exceeds its net realizable
value or inventory is excess or obsolete, or we enter into arrangements with third parties for the sale of raw
materials that do not allow us to recover our current contractually committed price for such raw materials, we
record a write-down or accrual, which may be material, equal to the difference between the cost of inventories
and the estimated net realizable value. If actual market conditions are less favorable than those projected by
management, additional inventory write-downs may be required that could negatively affect our gross margin and
operating results. If actual market conditions are more favorable, we may have higher gross margin when
products that have been previously written down are sold in the normal course of business.

Stock-Based Compensation

We provide stock-based awards to our employees, executive officers and directors through various equity

compensation plans including our employee stock option and restricted stock plans. We measure and record
compensation expense for all stock-based payment awards based on estimated fair values. The fair value of
restricted stock awards and units is based on the market price of our common stock on the date of grant. We
have not granted stock options since fiscal 2008. We are required under current accounting guidance to estimate
forfeitures at the date of grant. Our estimate of forfeitures is based on our historical activity, which we believe is
indicative of expected forfeitures. In subsequent periods if the actual rate of forfeitures differs from our estimate,
the forfeiture rates are required to be revised, as necessary. Changes in the estimated forfeiture rates can have a
significant effect on stock-based compensation expense since the effect of adjusting the rate is recognized in the
period the forfeiture estimate is changed.

We also grant performance share units to executive officers and certain employees that require us to

estimate expected achievement of performance targets over the performance period. This estimate involves
judgment regarding future expectations of various financial performance measures. If there are changes in our
estimate of the level of financial performance measures expected to be achieved, the related stock-based
compensation expense may be significantly increased or reduced in the period that our estimate changes.

Variable Interest Entities (‘‘VIE’’)

We regularly evaluate our relationships and involvement with unconsolidated VIEs and our other equity and

cost method investments, to determine whether we have a controlling financial interest in them or have become
the primary beneficiary, thereby requiring us to consolidate their financial results into our financial statements. In

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connection with the sale of the equity interests in the entities that hold solar power plants, we also consider
whether we retain a variable interest in the entity sold, either through retaining a financial interest or by
contractual means. If we determine that the entity sold is a VIE and that we hold a variable interest, we then
evaluate whether we are the primary beneficiary. If we determine that we are the primary beneficiary, we will
consolidate the VIE. The determination of whether we are the primary beneficiary is based upon whether we
have the power to direct the activities that most directly impact the economic performance of the VIE and
whether we absorb any losses or benefits that would be potentially significant to the VIE.

Accounting for Business Divestitures

From time to time, we may dispose of significant assets or portion of our business by sale or exchange for
other assets. In accounting for such transactions, we apply the applicable guidance of U.S. GAAP pertaining to
discontinued operations and disposals of components of an entity. We assess such transaction as regards specified
significance measures to determine whether a disposal qualifies as a discontinuance of operations verses a sale of
asset components of our entity. Our assessment includes how such a disposal may represent a significant strategic
shift in our operations and its impact on our continuing involvement as regards that portion of our business.
Instances where disposals do not remove our ability to participate in a significant portion of our business are
accounted as disposal of assets. Instances where disposals remove our ability to participate in a significant
portion of our business are accounted as discontinued operations. For additional details see Note 4. Business
Combinations and Divestitures’’ under ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data-Notes to
Consolidated Financial Statements.‘‘ We charge disposal related costs that are not part of the consideration to
general and administrative expense as they are incurred. These costs typically include transaction and disposal
costs, such as legal, accounting, and other professional fees.

Accounting for Business Combinations

We record all acquired assets and liabilities, including goodwill, other intangible assets and in-process
research and development, at fair value. The initial recording of goodwill, other intangible assets and in-process
research and development requires certain estimates and assumptions concerning the determination of the fair
values and useful lives. The judgments made in the context of the purchase price allocation can materially affect
our future results of operations. Accordingly, for significant acquisitions, we obtain assistance from third-party
valuation specialists. The valuations calculated from estimates are based on information available at the
acquisition date. Goodwill is not amortized, but is subject to annual tests for impairment or more frequent tests if
events or circumstances indicate it may be impaired. Other intangible assets are amortized over their estimated
useful lives and are subject to impairment if events or circumstances indicate a possible inability to realize the
carrying amount. For additional details see ‘‘Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestitures’’ and ‘‘Note 5.
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets’’ under ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to
Consolidated Financial Statements.‘‘

Long-Lived Assets

Our long-lived assets include property, plant and equipment, solar power systems leased and to be leased,
and other intangible assets with finite lives. We evaluate our long-lived assets for impairment whenever events or
changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of such assets may not be recoverable. Factors
considered important that could result in an impairment review include significant under-performance relative to
expected historical or projected future operating results, significant changes in the manner of use of acquired
assets and significant negative industry or economic trends. Our impairment evaluation of long-lived assets
includes an analysis of estimated future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by the assets over
their remaining estimated useful lives. If our estimate of future undiscounted net cash flows is insufficient to
recover the carrying value of the assets over the remaining estimated useful lives, we record an impairment loss
in the amount by which the carrying value of the assets exceeds the fair value. Fair value is generally measured
based on either quoted market prices, if available, or discounted cash flow analyses.

In the second quarter of fiscal 2018, we announced our proposed plan to transition our corporate structure
into upstream and downstream business units, and our long-term strategy to upgrade our IBC technology to our
Maxeon 5. Accordingly, we are upgrading the equipment associated with our manufacturing operations for the
production of Maxeon 5 over the next several years. In connection with these planned changes that will impact
the utilization of our manufacturing assets, continued pricing challenges in the industry, as well as the then

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ongoing uncertainties associated with the Section 201 trade case, we determined indicators of impairment existed
and therefore performed a recoverability test by estimating future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be
generated from the use of these asset groups. Based on our fixed asset investment recoverability test performed,
we determined that our estimate of future undiscounted net cash in-flows was insufficient to recover the carrying
value of the upstream business unit’s assets and consequently performed an impairment analysis by comparing
the carrying value of the asset group to its estimated fair value. Refer to Note 6. Balance Sheet Components’’ for
further details.

Accounting for Income Taxes

On December 22, 2017, the U.S. enacted significant changes to U.S. tax law following the passage and
signing of H.R.1, ‘‘An Act to Provide for Reconciliation Pursuant to Titles II and V of the Concurrent Resolution
on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2018‘‘ (previously known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the ‘‘Tax Act’’).
The Tax Act reduced the U.S. federal corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%, required companies to pay a one-time
transition tax on earnings of certain foreign subsidiaries that were previously tax deferred and creates new taxes
on certain foreign sourced earnings. The U.S. Department of Treasury has broad authority to issue regulations
and interpretive guidance that may significantly impact how we would apply the law and impact our results of
operations in the period issued. The Tax Act requires complex computations not previously provided in U.S. tax
law. As such, the application of accounting guidance for such items was previously uncertain. During Q4 2018,
we completed our analysis based on legislative updates currently available and reported no significant changes to
the provisional amounts previously recorded which did not impact our income tax provision. We also confirmed
that the Act does not impact our expectations of actual cash payments for income taxes in the foreseeable future.
For more information, see ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data-Notes to Consolidated
Financial Statements-Note 14. Income taxes.‘‘

The Tax Act also included a provision to tax Global Intangible Low-Taxed Income (‘‘GILTI’’), of foreign
subsidiaries in excess of a deemed return on their tangible assets. Pursuant to the SEC guidance on accounting
for the Tax Act, corporations are allowed to make an accounting policy election to either (i) recognize the tax
impact of GILTI as a period cost (the ‘‘period cost method’’), or (ii) account for GILTI in the corporation’s
measurement of deferred taxes (the ‘‘deferred method’’). In the fourth quarter of the fiscal year 2018, we elected
to recognize the tax impact of GILTI as a period cost.

Our global operations involve manufacturing, research and development, and selling and project

development activities. Profit from non-U.S. activities is subject to local country taxation, but not subject to U.S.
tax until repatriated to the United States. It is our intention to indefinitely reinvest these earnings outside the
United States. We record a valuation allowance to reduce our U.S., Malta, South Africa, and Spain entities’
deferred tax assets to the amount that is more likely than not to be realized. In assessing the need for a valuation
allowance, we consider historical levels of income, expectations and risks associated with the estimates of future
taxable income and ongoing prudent and feasible tax planning strategies. In the event we determine that we
would be able to realize additional deferred tax assets in the future in excess of the net recorded amount, or if
we subsequently determine that realization of an amount previously recorded is unlikely, we would record an
adjustment to the deferred tax asset valuation allowance, which would change income tax in the period of
adjustment. As of December 30, 2018, we believe there is insufficient evidence to realize additional deferred tax
assets beyond the U.S. net operating losses that can be benefited through a carryback election; however, the
reversal of the valuation allowance, which could be material, could occur in a future period.

The calculation of tax expense and liabilities involves dealing with uncertainties in the application of

complex global tax regulations, including in the tax valuation of projects sold to tax equity partnerships and other
third parties. We recognize potential liabilities for anticipated tax audit issues in the United States and other tax
jurisdictions based on our estimate of whether, and the extent to which, additional taxes will be due. If payment
of these amounts ultimately proves to be unnecessary, the reversal of the liabilities would result in tax benefits
being recognized in the period in which we determine the liabilities are no longer necessary. If the estimate of
tax liabilities proves to be less than the ultimate tax assessment, a further charge to expense would result. We
accrue interest and penalties on tax contingencies which are classified as ‘‘Provision for income taxes‘‘ in our
Consolidated Statements of Operations and are not considered material. In addition, foreign exchange gains
(losses) may result from estimated tax liabilities which are expected to be realized in currencies other than the
U.S. dollar.

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Pursuant to the Tax Sharing Agreement with Cypress, our former parent company, we are obligated to
indemnify Cypress upon current utilization of carryforward tax attributes generated while we were part of the
Cypress consolidated or combined group. Further, to the extent Cypress experiences any tax examination
assessments attributable to our operations while part of the Cypress consolidated or combined group, Cypress
will require an indemnification from us for those aspects of the assessment that relate to our operations. See also
‘‘Item 1A. Risk Factors - Risks Related to Our Operations-Our agreements with Cypress require us to indemnify
Cypress for certain tax liabilities. These indemnification obligations and related contractual restrictions may limit
our ability to pursue certain business initiatives.‘‘

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Cash Flows

A summary of the sources and uses of cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents

is as follows:

(In thousands)

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

Net cash used in operating activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $(543,389) $(267,412) $(312,283)
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 274,900 $(293,084) $(354,783)
Net cash provided by financing activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 85,847 $ 589,932 $ 159,779

Operating Activities

Net cash used in operating activities in fiscal 2018 was $543.4 million and was primarily the result of:
(i) net loss of $917.5 million; (ii) $182.9 million increase in long-term financing receivables related to our net
investment in sales-type leases; (iii) $127.3 million decrease in accounts payable and other accrued liabilities,
primarily attributable to payments of accrued expenses; (iv) $39.2 million increase in inventories to support the
construction of our solar energy projects; (v) $59.3 million gain on business divestiture; (vi) $54.2 million gain
on the sale of equity investments; (vii) $30.5 million decrease in contract liabilities driven by construction
activities; (viii) $43.5 million increase in contract assets driven by construction activities; and (ix) $0.2 million
increase in accounts receivable, primarily driven by billings. This was partially offset by: (i) impairment of
property, plant and equipment of $369.2 million; (ii) impairment of residential lease assets of $189.7 million;
(iii) loss on sale of residential lease assets of $62.2 million; (iv) net non-cash charges of $162.1 million related to
depreciation, stock-based compensation and other non-cash charges; (v) $22.8 million decrease in prepaid
expenses and other assets, primarily related to the receipt of prepaid inventory; (vi) $17.8 million decrease in
equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees; (vii) $44.4 million decrease in advance payments made to
suppliers; (viii) $39.5 million decrease in project assets, primarily related to the construction of our Commercial
solar energy projects; (ix) $3.9 million dividend from equity method investees; (x) $6.4 million unrealized loss
on equity investments with readily determinable fair value; and (xi) $6.9 million net change in income taxes.

Net cash used in operating activities in fiscal 2017 was $267.4 million and was primarily the result of:

(i) net loss of $1,170.9 million; (ii) $216.3 million decrease in accounts payable and other accrued liabilities,
primarily attributable to payment of accrued expenses; (iii) $123.7 million increase in long-term financing
receivables related to our net investment in sales-type leases; (iv) $1.2 million decrease in accounts receivable,
primarily driven by collections; (v) $38.2 million increase in inventories to support the construction of our solar
energy projects; (vi) $25.9 million increase in equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees; (vii) $7.0 million
net change in income taxes; and (viii) $5.3 million gain on sale of equity method investment. This was partially
offset by: (i) $624.3 million impairment of residential lease assets; (ii) other net non-cash charges of
$239.6 million related to depreciation, stock-based compensation and other non-cash charges; (iii) $145.2 million
increase in contract liabilities driven by construction activities; (iv) $110.5 million decrease in prepaid expenses
and other assets, primarily related to the receipt of prepaid inventory; (v) $68.8 million decrease in advance
payments made to suppliers; (vi) $2.4 million decrease in project assets, primarily related to the construction of
our Commercial and Power Plant solar energy projects; (vii) $30.1 million dividend from 8point3 Energy
Partners; (viii) $10.7 million decrease in contract assets driven by milestone billings; and (iv) $89.6 million
impairment of 8point3 Energy Partners investment balance. Upon adoption of ASC 606, we recognized a material
amount of deferred profit which required us to evaluate and record an impairment of the 8point3 investment
balance in the first quarter of fiscal 2017.

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Net cash used in operating activities in fiscal 2016 was $312.3 million and was primarily the result of:
(i) net loss of $521.4 million; (ii) $203.3 million non-cash settlement of preexisting relationships in connection
with the acquisition of AUOSP; (iii) $172.3 million increase in long-term financing receivables related to our net
investment in sales-type leases; (iv) $70.4 million increase in inventories driven by purchases of polysilicon; (v)
$33.5 million increase in accounts receivable, primarily attributable to collections; (vi) $3.6 million increase in
project assets, primarily related to the construction of our Commercial and Power Plant solar energy projects;
(vii) $14.3 million increase in equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees; (viii) $2.8 million excess tax
benefit from stock-based compensation; (ix) $18.8 million decrease in accounts payable and other accrued
liabilities; (x) $47.6 million decrease in contract liabilities; and (xi) $6.6 million increase in deferred income
taxes and income tax liabilities. This was partially offset by: (i) other net non-cash charges of $237.9 million
related to depreciation, stock-based compensation and other non-cash charges; (ii) $166.7 million in non-cash
restructuring charge; (iii) $147.4 million impairment of goodwill; (iv) $90.9 million impairment of equity method
investments; (v) $3.2 million decrease in prepaid expenses and other assets; (vi) $74.3 million decrease in
advance payments made to suppliers; (vii) $54.9 million decrease in contract assets; and (viii) $6.9 million
dividend from 8point3 Energy Partners LP.

Investing Activities

Net cash provided by investing activities in fiscal 2018 was $274.9 million, which included (i) proceeds

from the sale of investment in joint ventures and non-public companies of $420.3 million; (ii) proceeds of
$23.3 million from business divestiture; and (iii) a $13.0 million dividend from equity method investees. This
was partially offset by: (i) $166.9 million in capital expenditures primarily related to the expansion of our solar
cell manufacturing capacity and costs associated with solar power systems, leased and to be leased; and (ii)
$14.7 million paid for investments in consolidated and unconsolidated investees.

Net cash used in investing activities in fiscal 2017 was $293.1 million, which included (i) $282.9 million in

capital expenditures primarily related to the expansion of our solar cell manufacturing capacity and costs
associated with solar power systems, leased and to be leased; (ii) $18.6 million paid for investments in
consolidated and unconsolidated investees; and (iii) $1.3 million purchase of marketable securities. This was
partially offset by proceeds from the sale of investment in joint ventures of $6.0 million and a $3.8 million
dividend from equity method investees.

Net cash used in investing activities in fiscal 2016 was $354.8 million, which included (i) $310.1 million in

capital expenditures primarily related to the expansion of our solar cell manufacturing capacity and costs
associated with solar power systems, leased and to be leased; (ii) $24.0 million paid for the acquisition of
AUOSP, net of cash acquired; (iii) $11.5 million paid for investments in consolidated and unconsolidated
investees; (iv) $9.8 million in payments to 8point3 Energy Partners; (v) $5.0 million paid for purchases of
marketable securities; and (vi) $0.5 million paid for intangibles. This was partially offset by $6.2 million in
proceeds from sales or maturities of marketable securities.

Financing Activities

Net cash provided by financing activities in fiscal 2018 was $85.8 million, which included: (i)

$129.3 million of net contributions from noncontrolling interests and redeemable noncontrolling interests related
to residential lease projects; (ii) $174.9 million in net proceeds from the issuance of non-recourse residential
financing, net of issuance costs; and (iii) $94.7 million in net proceeds from the issuance of non-recourse power
plant and commercial financing, net of issuance costs. This was partially offset by: (i) $307.6 million in net
repayments of 0.75% debentures due 2018, bank loans and other debt; and (ii) $5.5 million in purchases of
treasury stock for tax withholding obligations on vested restricted stock.

Net cash provided by financing activities in fiscal 2017 was $589.9 million, which included: (i)

$351.8 million in net proceeds from the issuance of non-recourse power plant and commercial financing, net of
issuance costs; (ii) $179.2 million of net contributions from noncontrolling interests and redeemable
noncontrolling interests primarily related to residential lease projects; and (iii) $82.7 million in net proceeds from
the issuance of non-recourse residential financing, net of issuance costs. This was partially offset by: (i)
19.1 million in net repayments of bank loans and other debt; and (ii) $4.8 million in purchases of treasury stock
for tax withholding obligations on vested restricted stock.

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Net cash provided by financing activities in fiscal 2016 was $159.8 million, which included: (i)

$146.1 million in net proceeds from the issuance of non-recourse residential financing, net of issuance costs; and
(ii) $127.3 million of net contributions from noncontrolling interests and redeemable noncontrolling interests
related to the residential lease projects. This was partially offset by: (i) $56.4 million in net repayments from the
issuance of non-recourse power plant and commercial financing, net of issuance costs; (ii) $30.0 million in net
repayments of bank loans and other debt; (iii) $21.5 million in purchases of treasury stock for tax withholding
obligations on vested restricted stock; and (iv) $5.7 million in cash paid for acquisitions.

Debt and Credit Sources

Convertible Debentures

As of December 30, 2018, an aggregate principal amount of $425.0 million of the 4.00% senior convertible

debentures due 2023 (the ‘‘4.00% debentures due 2023’’) remained issued and outstanding. The 4.00%
debentures due 2023 were issued on December 15, 2015. Interest on the 4.00% debentures due 2023 is payable
on January 15 and July 15 of each year, beginning on July 15, 2016. Holders are able to exercise their right to
convert the debentures at any time into shares of our common stock at an initial conversion price approximately
equal to $30.53 per share, subject to adjustment in certain circumstances. If not earlier repurchased or converted,
the 4.00% debentures due 2023 mature on January 15, 2023. Holders may require us to repurchase all or a
portion of their 4.00% debentures due 2023, upon a fundamental change, as described in the related indenture, at
a cash repurchase price equal to 100% of the principal amount plus accrued and unpaid interest. If we undergo a
non-stock change of control, as described in the related indenture, the 4.00% debentures due 2023 will be subject
to redemption at our option, in whole but not in part, for a period of 30 calendar days following a repurchase
date relating to the non-stock change of control, at a cash redemption price equal to 100% of the principal
amount plus accrued and unpaid interest. Otherwise, the 4.00% debentures due 2023 are not redeemable at our
option prior to the maturity date. In the event of certain events of default, Wells Fargo Bank, National
Association (‘‘Wells Fargo’’), the trustee, or the holders of a specified amount of then-outstanding 4.00%
debentures due 2023 will have the right to declare all amounts then outstanding due and payable.

As of December 30, 2018, an aggregate principal amount of $400.0 million of the 0.875% senior
convertible debentures due 2021 (the ‘‘0.875% debentures due 2021’’) remained issued and outstanding. The
0.875% debentures due 2021 were issued on June 11, 2014. Interest on the 0.875% debentures due 2021 is
payable on June 1 and December 1 of each year. Holders are able to exercise their right to convert the
debentures at any time into shares of our common stock at an initial conversion price approximately equal to
$48.76 per share, subject to adjustment in certain circumstances. If not earlier repurchased or converted, the
0.875% debentures due 2021 mature on June 1, 2021. Holders may require us to repurchase all or a portion of
their 0.875% debentures due 2021, upon a fundamental change, as described in the related indenture, at a cash
repurchase price equal to 100% of the principal amount plus accrued and unpaid interest. If we undergo a
non-stock change of control, as described in the related indenture, the 0.875% debentures due 2021 will be
subject to redemption at our option, in whole but not in part, for a period of 30 calendar days following a
repurchase date relating to the non-stock change of control, at a cash redemption price equal to 100% of the
principal amount plus accrued and unpaid interest. Otherwise, the 0.875% debentures due 2021 are not
redeemable at our option prior to the maturity date. In the event of certain events of default, Wells Fargo, the
trustee, or the holders of a specified amount of then-outstanding 0.875% debentures due 2021 will have the right
to declare all amounts then outstanding due and payable.

On June 1, 2018, the 0.75% senior convertible debentures due 2018 were redeemed at maturity with
proceeds from the Term Credit Agreement (the ‘‘Term Credit Agreement’’) with Credit Agricole Corporate and
Investment Bank (‘‘Credit Agricole’’) and as of December 30, 2018 were no longer issued or outstanding. On
June 19, 2018, we completed the divestiture of our equity interest in the 8point3 Group and received, after the
payment of fees and expenses, merger proceeds of approximately $359.9 million in cash and no longer directly
or indirectly owns any equity interests in the 8point3 Group (see ‘‘Note 11. Equity Investments’’). Immediately
following the transaction, we repaid our loan under the Term Credit Agreement in full with the proceeds of the
divestiture, retaining the excess proceeds.

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Loan Agreement with California Enterprise Development Authority (‘‘CEDA’’)

On December 29, 2010, we borrowed from CEDA the proceeds of the $30.0 million aggregate principal

amount of CEDA’s tax-exempt Recovery Zone Facility Revenue Bonds (SunPower Corporation - Headquarters
Project) Series 2010 (the ‘‘Bonds’’) maturing April 1, 2031 under a loan agreement with CEDA. Certain of our
obligations under the loan agreement were contained in a promissory note dated December 29, 2010 issued by us
to CEDA, which assigned the promissory note, along with all right, title and interest in the loan agreement, to
Wells Fargo, as trustee, with respect to the Bonds for the benefit of the holders of the Bonds. The Bonds bear
interest at a fixed-rate of 8.50% per annum. As of December 30, 2018, the fair value of the Bonds was
$32.4 million, determined by using Level 2 inputs based on quarterly market prices as reported by an
independent pricing source.

As of December 30, 2018, the $30.0 million aggregate principal amount of the Bonds was classified as

‘‘Long-term debt‘‘ in our Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Revolving Credit Facility with Credit Agricole

On June 23, 2017, we entered into an Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Agreement with Credit
Agricole, as administrative agent, and the other lenders party thereto (the ‘‘Revolver’’), which amends and
restates the Revolving Credit Agreement dated July 3, 2013, as amended.

The Revolver was entered into in connection with a letter agreement between us and Total S.A. dated
May 8, 2017 (the ‘‘Letter Agreement’’), to facilitate the issuance by Total S.A. (‘‘Total S.A.’’) of one or more
guaranties of our payment obligations of up to $100.0 million under the Revolver. The maturity date of the Letter
Agreement and the Revolver is August 26, 2019. In consideration for the commitments of Total S.A. pursuant to
the Letter Agreement, we are required to pay a guarantor commitment fee of 0.50% per annum for the unutilized
Support Amount and a guaranty fee of 2.35% per annum of the guaranteed amount outstanding.

Available borrowings under the Revolver are $300.0 million; provided that the aggregate principal amount
of all amounts borrowed under the facility cannot exceed 95.0% of the amounts guaranteed by Total S.A. under
the Letter Agreement. Amounts borrowed under the facility may be repaid and reborrowed until the maturity
date.

We are required to pay (a) interest on outstanding borrowings under the facility of (i) with respect to any
LIBOR rate loan, an amount equal to 0.6% plus the LIBOR rate divided by a percentage equal to one minus the
stated maximum rate of all reserves required to be maintained against ‘‘Eurocurrency liabilities’’ as specified in
Regulation D; and (ii) with respect to any alternate base rate loan, an amount equal to 0.25% plus the greater of
(1) the prime rate, (2) the Federal Funds rate plus 0.50%, and (3) the one-month LIBOR rate plus 1%; and (b) a
commitment fee of 0.06% per annum on funds available for borrowing and not borrowed. The Revolver includes
representations, covenants, and events of default customary for financing transactions of this type. As of
December 30, 2018, we had no outstanding borrowings under the revolving credit facility.

2016 Letter of Credit Facility Agreements

In June 2016, we entered into a Continuing Agreement for Standby Letters of Credit and Demand

Guarantees with Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch and Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas (the ‘‘2016
Non-Guaranteed LC Facility’’) which provides for the issuance, upon request by us, of letters of credit to support
our obligations in an aggregate amount not to exceed $50.0 million. The 2016 Non-Guaranteed LC Facility
terminated on June 29, 2018. In March 2018, we entered into a letter agreement in connection with the 2016
Non-Guaranteed LC Facility. Pursuant to the letter agreement, we have advised Deutsche Bank AG New York
Branch and Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas (‘‘Issuer’’), and the Issuer has acknowledged, that one or
more outstanding letters of credit or demand guarantees issued under the letter agreement may remain
outstanding, at our request, after the scheduled termination date set forth in the letter agreement. As of December
30, 2018, letters of credit issued and outstanding under the 2016 Non-Guaranteed LC Facility totaled
$18.1 million.

In June 2016, we entered into bilateral letter of credit facility agreements (the ‘‘2016 Guaranteed LC

Facilities’’) with each of The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ (‘‘BTMU’’), Credit Agricole, and HSBC USA
Bank, National Association (‘‘HSBC’’). Each letter of credit facility agreement provides for the issuance, upon
our request, of letters of credit by the issuing bank thereunder in order to support certain of our obligations until

84

December 31, 2018. Payment of obligations under each of the letter of credit facilities are guaranteed by Total
S.A. pursuant to the Credit Support Agreement. Aggregate letter of credit amounts may be increased upon the
agreement of the respective parties but, otherwise, may not exceed $75.0 million with BTMU, $75.0 million with
Credit Agricole and $175.0 million with HSBC, for a total capacity of $325.0 million. Each letter of credit issued
under one of the letter of credit facilities generally must have an expiration date, subject to certain exceptions, no
later than the earlier of (a) two years from completion of the applicable project and (b) March 31, 2020.

In June 2016, in connection with the 2016 Guaranteed LC Facilities, we entered into a transfer agreement to

transfer to the 2016 Guaranteed LC Facilities all existing outstanding letters of credit issued under our letter of
credit facility agreement with Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch and Deutsche Bank Trust Company
Americas, as administrative agent, and certain financial institutions, entered into in August 2011 and amended
from time to time. In connection with the transfer of the existing outstanding letters of credit, the aggregate
commitment amount under the August 2011 letter of credit facility was permanently reduced to zero on June 29,
2016. As of December 30, 2018, letters of credit issued and outstanding under the 2016 Guaranteed LC Facilities
totaled $36.3 million.

September 2011 Letter of Credit Facility with Deutsche Bank and Deutsche Bank Trust Company
Americas (together, ‘‘Deutsche Bank Trust’’)

On September 27, 2011, we entered into a letter of credit facility with Deutsche Bank Trust which provides
for the issuance, upon request by us, of letters of credit to support our obligations in an aggregate amount not to
exceed $200.0 million. Each letter of credit issued under the facility is fully cash-collateralized and we have
entered into a security agreement with Deutsche Bank Trust, granting them a security interest in a cash collateral
account established for this purpose.

As of December 30, 2018, letters of credit issued under the Deutsche Bank Trust facility totaled

$3.0 million, which was fully collateralized with restricted cash as classified on the Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Revolving Credit Facility with Mizuho Bank Ltd. (‘‘Mizuho’’) and Goldman Sachs Bank USA (‘‘Goldman
Sachs’’)

On May 4, 2016, we entered into a revolving credit facility (as amended, the ‘‘Construction Revolver’’)
with Mizuho, as administrative agent, and Goldman Sachs, under which we could borrow up to $200 million.
The Construction Revolver also included a $100 million accordion feature. On October 27, 2017, we and Mizuho
entered into an amendment to the Construction Revolver, which reduced the amount that we could borrow to up
to $50 million.

On June 28, 2018, all outstanding loans under the Construction Revolver were repaid in full and the facility

was terminated, and as of December 30, 2018, outstanding borrowings under the Construction Revolver totaled
zero. As of December 30, 2018, we also had $75.0 million in additional borrowing capacity under our other
limited recourse construction financing facilities.

Subordinated Mezzanine Loan with SunStrong Capital Lender LLC, an indirect subsidiary of Hannon
Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (‘‘Hannon Armstrong’’)

On August 10, 2018, SunStrong Capital Acquisition, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company
(‘‘Mezzanine Loan 1 Borrower’’), and SunStrong Capital Lender LLC, a subsidiary of Hannon Armstrong,
entered into a mezzanine loan agreement under which Mezzanine Loan 1 Borrower borrowed a subordinated,
mezzanine loan of $110.5 million (the ‘‘Mezzanine Loan 1’’) and incurred issuance costs of $1.4 million related
to the loan. On August 31, 2018, we repaid a principal amount of $2.1 million that resulted in an adjusted
Mezzanine Loan 1 balance, net of issuance costs, of $107.0 million. The divestiture of our Residential Lease
Portfolio resulted in the deconsolidation of this debt. See ‘‘Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestitures’’ for
additional information.

Non-recourse Financing and Other Debt

In order to facilitate the construction, sale or ongoing operation of certain solar projects, including our
residential leasing program, we regularly obtain project-level financing. These financings are secured either by
the assets of the specific project being financed or by our equity in the relevant project entity and the lenders do
not have recourse to our general assets for repayment of such debt obligations, and hence the financings are

85

referred to as non-recourse. Non-recourse financing is typically in the form of loans from third-party financial
institutions, but also takes other forms, including ‘‘flip partnership‘‘ structures, sale-leaseback arrangements, or
other forms commonly used in the solar or similar industries. We may seek non-recourse financing covering
solely the construction period of the solar project or may also seek financing covering part or all of the operating
life of the solar project. We classify non-recourse financings in our Consolidated Balance Sheets in accordance
with their terms; however, in certain circumstances, we may repay or refinance these financings prior to stated
maturity dates in connection with the sale of the related project or similar such circumstances. In addition, in
certain instances, the customer may assume the loans at the time that the project entity is sold to the customer. In
these instances, subsequent debt assumption is reflected as a financing outflow and operating inflow in the
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows to reflect the substance of the assumption as a facilitation of customer
financing from a third party.

For our residential lease program, non-recourse financing is typically accomplished by aggregating an
agreed-upon volume of solar power systems and leases with residential customers into a specific project entity.
We have entered into the following non-recourse financings with respect to our residential lease program:

In fiscal 2016, we entered into bridge loans to finance solar power systems and leases under our residential

lease program. The loans are repaid over terms ranging from two to seven years. Some loans may be prepaid
without penalties at our option at any time, while other loans may be prepaid, subject to a prepayment fee, after
one year. During the fiscal 2018 and 2017, we had net repayments of $1.6 million, and $10.3 million,
respectively, in connection with these loans. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the aggregate
carrying amount of these loans, presented within ‘‘Short-term debt‘‘ and ‘‘Long-term debt‘‘ on our Consolidated
Balance Sheets, was zero and $17.1 million, respectively. The decrease in the balance over the prior period can
be attributed to the divestiture of our residential lease assets portfolio and the subsequent assumption of this debt
by SunStrong. See ‘‘Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestitures‘‘ for additional information.

We enter into long-term loans to finance solar power systems and leases under our residential lease
program. The loans are repaid over their terms of between 4 and 25 years. The remaining long-term loans may
be prepaid without significant penalty, at our option, any time for some loans or beginning four years after the
original issuance for others. During fiscal 2018 and 2017, we had net proceeds of $176.6 million and
$72.4 million, respectively, in connection with these loans. As of December 30, 2018, and December 31, 2017,
the aggregate carrying amount of these loans, presented within ‘‘Short-term debt‘‘ and ‘‘Long-term debt‘‘ on our
Consolidated Balance Sheets, was zero and $356.6 million, respectively. The decrease in the balance over the
prior period can be attributed to the divestiture of our residential lease assets portfolio. See ‘‘Note 4. Business
Combinations and Divestitures‘‘ for additional information.

We also enter into facilities with third-party tax equity investors under which the investors invest in a
structure known as a ‘‘partnership flip.‘‘ We hold controlling interests in these less-than-wholly-owned entities
and therefore fully consolidate these entities. We account for the portion of net assets in the consolidated entities
attributable to the investors as noncontrolling interests in our consolidated financial statements. Noncontrolling
interests in subsidiaries that are redeemable at the option of the noncontrolling interest holder are classified
accordingly as redeemable between liabilities and equity on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. During fiscal 2018
and 2017, we had net contributions of $129.3 million and $179.2 million, respectively, under these facilities and
attributed losses of $106.4 million and $91.2 million, respectively, to the noncontrolling interests corresponding
principally to certain assets, including tax credits, which were allocated to the noncontrolling interests during the
periods. On November 5, 2018, we sold a 49% of our interest in our residential lease assets portfolio to a joint
venture. As a result of this transaction, the partnerships holding such assets was deconsolidated and the
non-controlling interests that existed prior to this transaction were eliminated from our balance sheet. As of
December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the aggregate carrying amount of these facilities, presented within
‘‘Redeemable noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries’’ and ‘‘Noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries’’ on our
Consolidated Balance Sheets, was $58.8 million and $119.4 million, respectively. For additional information,
refer to ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data-Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements-Note
4. Business Combination and Divestitures.‘‘

For our power plant and commercial solar projects, non-recourse financing is typically accomplished using
an individual solar power system or a series of solar power systems with a common end customer, in each case
owned by a specific project entity. We have entered into the following non-recourse financings with respect to
our power plant and commercial projects:

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•

•

•

In fiscal 2016, we entered into a long-term credit facility to finance the 125 MW utility-scale Boulder
power plant project in Nevada. In February 2018, we sold our equity interest in Boulder Solar I where
the buyer repaid the remaining principal loan balance of $27.3 million upon the sale of the project. As
of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the aggregate carrying amount of this facility,
presented within ‘‘Short-term debt‘‘ and ‘‘Long-term debt‘‘ on our Consolidated Balance Sheets, was
zero and $28.2 million, respectively.

In fiscal 2013, we entered into a long-term loan agreement to finance a 5.4 MW utility and power plant
operating in Arizona. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the aggregate carrying amount
under this loan, presented within ‘‘Short-term debt‘‘ and ‘‘Long-term debt‘‘ on our Consolidated
Balance Sheets, was $6.7 million and $7.2 million, respectively.

Other debt is further composed of non-recourse project loans in Europe, the Middle East and Africa,
which are scheduled to mature through 2028, and of limited recourse construction financing loans made
in the ordinary course of business to individual projects in the United States, which are scheduled to
mature through 2021.

See ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements—Note 7. Leasing’’ in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements
in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for a discussion of our sale-leaseback arrangements accounted for under the
financing method.

Liquidity

As of December 30, 2018, we had unrestricted cash and cash equivalents of $309.4 million as compared to

$435.1 million as of December 31, 2017. Our cash balances are held in numerous locations throughout the
world, and as of December 30, 2018, we had approximately $104.9 million held outside of the United States.
This offshore cash is used to fund operations of our business in the Europe and Asia Pacific regions as well as
non-U.S. manufacturing operations, which require local payment for product materials and other expenses. The
amounts held outside of the United States represent the earnings of our foreign subsidiaries which under the
enacted Tax Act, incurred a one-time transition tax (such amounts were previously tax deferred), however, would
not result in a cash payment due to our cumulative net operating loss position. We expect total capital
expenditures related to purchases of property, plant and equipment of approximately $81.9 million in fiscal 2019
in order to increase our manufacturing capacity for our highest efficiency Maxeon 3 product platform and our
new P-Series technology, improve our current and next generation solar cell manufacturing technology, and other
projects. In addition, while we have begun the transition away from our project development business, we still
expect to invest capital to develop solar power systems and plants for sale to customers. The development of
solar power plants can require long periods of time and substantial initial investments. Our efforts in this area
may consist of all stages of development, including land acquisition, permitting, financing, construction,
operation and the eventual sale of the projects. We often choose to bear the costs of such efforts prior to the final
sale to a customer, which involves significant upfront investments of resources (including, for example, large
transmission deposits or other payments, which may be non-refundable), land acquisition, permitting, legal and
other costs, and in some cases the actual costs of constructing a project, in advance of the signing of PPAs and
EPC contracts and the receipt of any revenue, much of which is not recognized for several additional months or
years following contract signing. Any delays in disposition of one or more projects could have a negative impact
on our liquidity.

Certain of our customers also require performance bonds issued by a bonding agency or letters of credit
issued by financial institutions, which are returned to us upon satisfaction of contractual requirements. If there is
a contractual dispute with the customer, the customer may withhold the security or make a draw under such
security, which could have an adverse impact on our liquidity. Obtaining letters of credit may require adequate
collateral. All letters of credit issued under our 2016 Guaranteed LC Facilities are guaranteed by Total S.A.
pursuant to the Credit Support Agreement. Our September 2011 letter of credit facility with Deutsche Bank Trust
is fully collateralized by restricted cash, which reduces the amount of cash available for operations. As of
December 30, 2018, letters of credit issued under the Deutsche Bank Trust facility amounted to $3.0 million
which were fully collateralized with restricted cash on our Consolidated Balance Sheet.

In fiscal 2011, we launched our residential lease program with dealers in the United States, in partnership

with a third-party financial institution, which allows customers to obtain SunPower systems under lease
agreements up to 20 years, subject to financing availability. We have entered into facilities with financial

87

institutions that will provide financing to support additional residential solar lease projects. Under the terms of
certain programs, we receive upfront payments for periods under which the third-party financial institution has
agreed to assume collection risk for certain residential leases. Changes in the amount or timing of upfront
payments received from the financial institutions may have an impact on our cash position within the next twelve
months. The normal collection of monthly rent payments for leases placed in service is not expected to have a
material impact on our cash position within the next twelve months. We have entered into multiple facilities with
third-party investors under which both parties will invest in entities that hold SunPower solar power systems and
leases with residential customers. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, in conjunction with our efforts to generate
more available liquid funds in the near-term, we made the decision to sell a portion of our interest in the
Residential Lease Portfolio. As a result, we determined it was necessary to evaluate our Residential Lease
Portfolio for potential impairment. For additional information, see ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements—Note 7.
Leasing’’ in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. During the
year ended December 30, 2018, we received $151.2 million in contributions from investors under the related
facility agreements. During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018, we successfully sold a portion of our interest in the
Residential Lease Portfolio. In conjunction with our sale of the residential lease assets, we deconsolidated these
less-than-wholly-owned entities in which we previously held a controlling interest. For further information, see
‘‘Item 1. Financial Statements—Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestitures’’ in the Notes to the
Consolidated Financial Statements‘‘ in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Additionally, during fiscal 2015, 2016 and 2017, we entered into several long-term non-recourse loans to

finance solar power systems and leases under our residential lease program. In fiscal 2018, we drew down
$94.7 million of proceeds, net of issuance costs, under the loan agreements. During the fourth quarter of fiscal
2018, in conjunction with the sale of our interest in our residential lease assets portfolio we repaid these loans in
full. We are actively arranging additional third-party financing for our continuing residential lease program;
however, the credit markets are unpredictable, and if they become challenging, we may be unable to arrange
additional financing partners for our residential lease program in future periods, which could have a negative
impact on our sales. In the unlikely event that we enter into a material number of additional leases without
promptly obtaining corresponding third-party financing, our cash and working capital could be negatively
affected. Additionally, we have approximately $1.1 million of cash and cash equivalents within our remaining
consolidated residential leasing subsidiaries that is used by those subsidiaries for their working capital needs.
This cash is typically not available to us to use for general corporate purposes unless certain financial obligations
are first settled. In the event that we choose to transfer cash out of these subsidiaries for general corporate
purposes in the future, we would first be required to distribute a portion of the cash to lender debt reserves and
investors who hold noncontrolling interests in the relevant subsidiaries. For further information, see ‘‘Item 1.
Financial Statements—Note 7. Leasing’’ in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements‘‘ in this Annual
Report on Form 10-K.

Solar power plant projects often require significant up-front investments. These include payments for

preliminary engineering, permitting, legal, and other expenses before we can determine whether a project is
feasible. We often make arrangements with third-party financiers to acquire and build solar power systems or to
fund project construction using non-recourse project debt. As of December 30, 2018, outstanding amounts related
to our project financing totaled $6.5 million.

On June 23, 2017, we entered into an Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Agreement with Credit
Agricole, as administrative agent, and the other lenders party thereto, which amends and restates the Revolving
Credit Agreement dated July 3, 2013 by and between us, the Administrative Agent and the other parties thereto,
as amended to date. The Revolver was entered into in connection with the Letter Agreement between us and
Total S.A. dated May 8, 2017, which was entered into to facilitate the issuance by Total S.A of one or more
guaranties of our payment obligations of up to $100.0 million under the Revolver. The maturity date of the
facility under the Revolver remains August 26, 2019, and amounts borrowed under the facility may be repaid and
reborrowed until the Maturity Date. Available borrowings under the Revolver remain $300.0 million; provided
that the aggregate principal amount of all amounts borrowed under the facility cannot exceed 95.0% of the
amounts guaranteed by Total Solar International SAS (‘‘Total’’), formerly Total Energies Nouvelles Activités
USA, a subsidiary of Total S.A., under the Letter Agreement, effectively allowing us to borrow up to a maximum
of $95.0 million under the Revolver. As of December 30, 2018, $300.0 million remained undrawn under our
revolving credit facility with Credit Agricole.

88

There are no assurances, however, that we will have sufficient available cash to repay our indebtedness or
that we will be able to refinance such indebtedness on similar terms to the expiring indebtedness. If our capital
resources are insufficient to satisfy our liquidity requirements, we may seek to sell additional equity investments
or debt securities or obtain other debt financing. The current economic environment, however, could limit our
ability to raise capital by issuing new equity or debt securities on acceptable terms, and lenders may be unwilling
to lend funds on acceptable terms in the amounts that would be required to supplement cash flows to support
operations. The sale of additional equity investments or convertible debt securities would result in additional
dilution to our stockholders (and the potential for further dilution upon the exercise of warrants or the conversion
of convertible debt) and may not be available on favorable terms or at all, particularly in light of the current
conditions in the financial and credit markets. Additional debt would result in increased expenses and would
likely impose new restrictive covenants which may be similar or different than those restrictions contained in the
covenants under our current loan agreements and debentures. In addition, financing arrangements, including
project financing for our solar power plants and letters of credit facilities, may not be available to us, or may not
be available in amounts or on terms acceptable to us.

Challenging industry conditions and a competitive environment extended throughout fiscal 2018. Our net
losses, resulting in a net use of our available cash, continued in fiscal 2018 and are expected to continue through
fiscal 2019. Despite the challenging industry conditions, including uncertainty around the regulatory environment,
we believe that our cash and cash equivalents, including cash expected to be generated from operations, will be
sufficient to meet our obligations over the next 12 months from the date of the issuance of our financial
statements. Although we have been successful in our ability to divest certain investments and non-core assets,
such as the divestiture of our equity interest in 8point3 Energy Partners LP (Note 11. Equity Investments), the
sale of certain assets and intellectual property related to the production of microinverters (Note 4. Business
Combinations and Divestitures), and the sale of membership interests in our Residential Lease Portfolio (Note 4.
Business Combinations and Divestitures) and have secured other sources of financing in connection with our
short-term liquidity needs, as well as realizing cash savings resulting from restructuring actions and cost
reduction initiatives put in place in the third and fourth quarters of fiscal 2016 and the first and second quarter of
fiscal 2018, we continue to focus on improving our overall operating performance and liquidity, including
managing cash flow and working capital.

We also have the ability to enhance our available cash by borrowing up to $95.0 million under a revolving

credit facility (the ‘‘Revolver’’) with Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank (‘‘Credit Agricole’’)
pursuant to a Letter Agreement executed by us and Total S.A. on May 8, 2017 (the ‘‘Letter Agreement’’) through
August 26, 2019, the expiration date of the Letter Agreement (see ‘‘Note 2. Transactions with Total and Total
S.A.’’).

Although we have historically been able to generate liquidity, we cannot predict, with certainty, the outcome

of our actions to generate liquidity as planned.

Contractual Obligations

The following table summarizes our contractual obligations as of December 30, 2018:

Total

(In thousands)
Convertible debt, including interest1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 902,176
CEDA loan, including interest2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
61,238
Other debt, including interest3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
74,990
Future financing commitments4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
7,040
Operating lease commitments5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
117,799
Sale-leaseback financing6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
509,915
Capital lease commitments7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2,765
Non-cancellable purchase orders8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
206,674
Purchase commitments under agreements9. . . . . . . . .
713,309
Deferred purchase consideration in connection with
acquisition10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

60,000
$2,655,906

Payments Due by Fiscal Period

2019
$ 20,500
2,550
42,692
4,140
14,748
23,943
630
206,674
231,754

2020-2021
$438,968
5,100
9,203
2,900
26,825
64,739
1,292
—
413,580

2022-2023
$442,708
5,100
6,444
—
22,103
59,351
843
—
67,975

Beyond 2023
—
$
48,488
16,651
—
54,123
361,882
—
—
—

30,000
$577,631

30,000
$992,607

—
$604,524

—
$481,144

89

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

Convertible debt, including interest, relates to the aggregate of $825.0 million in outstanding principal amount of our senior convertible
debentures on December 30, 2018. For the purpose of the table above, we assume that all holders of the outstanding debentures will
hold the debentures through the date of maturity, and upon conversion, the values of the senior convertible debentures will be equal to
the aggregate principal amount with no premiums.

CEDA loan, including interest, relates to the proceeds of the $30.0 million aggregate principal amount of the Bonds. The Bonds mature
on April 1, 2031 and bear interest at a fixed rate of 8.50% through maturity.

Other debt, including interest, primarily relates to non-recourse finance projects and solar power systems and leases under our
residential lease program as described in ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements—Note 10. Commitments and Contingencies‘‘ in the Notes to
the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

In connection with purchase and joint venture agreements with non-public companies, we will be required to provide additional
financing to such parties of up to $7.0 million, subject to certain conditions.

Operating lease commitments primarily relate to certain solar power systems leased from unaffiliated third parties over minimum lease
terms of up to 20 years and various facility lease agreements.

Sale-leaseback financing relates to future minimum lease obligations for solar power systems under sale-leaseback arrangements which
were determined to include integral equipment and accounted for under the financing method.

Capital lease commitments primarily relate to certain buildings, manufacturing and equipment under capital leases in Europe for terms
of up to 6 years.

Non-cancellable purchase orders relate to purchases of raw materials for inventory and manufacturing equipment from a variety of
vendors.

Purchase commitments under agreements primarily relate to arrangements entered into with several suppliers, including some of our
non-consolidated investees, for polysilicon, ingots, wafers, and module-level power electronics and alternating current cables, among
others. These agreements specify future quantities and pricing of products to be supplied by the vendors for periods up to 5 years and
there are certain consequences, such as forfeiture of advanced deposits and liquidated damages relating to previous purchases, in the
event that we terminate the arrangements.

10

In connection with the acquisition of AUO SunPower Sdn. Bhd. in 2016, we are required to make noncancellable annual installment
payments during 2019 and 2020.

Liabilities Associated with Uncertain Tax Positions

Due to the complexity and uncertainty associated with our tax positions, we cannot make a reasonably
reliable estimate of the period in which cash settlement will be made for our liabilities associated with uncertain
tax positions in other long-term liabilities. Therefore, they have been excluded from the table above. As of
December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, total liabilities associated with uncertain tax positions were
$16.8 million and $19.4 million, respectively, and are included within ‘‘Other long-term liabilities‘‘ in our
Consolidated Balance Sheets as they are not expected to be paid within the next twelve months.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

As of December 30, 2018, we did not have any significant off-balance sheet arrangements, as defined in

Item 303(a)(4)(ii) of SEC Regulation S-K.

90

ITEM 7A: QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

Foreign Currency Exchange Risk

Our exposure to movements in foreign currency exchange rates is primarily related to sales to European
customers that are denominated in Euros. Revenue generated from European customers represented 7%, 5% and
3% of our total revenue in fiscal 2018, 2017 and 2016, respectively. A 10% change in the Euro exchange rate
would have impacted our revenue by approximately $11.5 million, $10.0 million and $7.6 million in fiscal 2018,
2017 and 2016, respectively.

In the past, we have experienced an adverse impact on our revenue, gross margin and profitability as a

result of foreign currency fluctuations. When foreign currencies appreciate against the U.S. dollar, inventories
and expenses denominated in foreign currencies become more expensive. An increase in the value of the U.S.
dollar relative to foreign currencies could make our solar power products more expensive for international
customers, thus potentially leading to a reduction in demand, our sales and profitability. Furthermore, many of
our competitors are foreign companies that could benefit from such a currency fluctuation, making it more
difficult for us to compete with those companies.

We currently conduct hedging activities which involve the use of option and/or forward currency contracts

that are designed to address our exposure to changes in the foreign exchange rate between the U.S. dollar and
other currencies. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had outstanding forward currency
contracts with aggregate notional values of $11.4 million and $10.3 million, respectively. Because we hedge
some of our expected future foreign exchange exposure, if associated revenues do not materialize we could
experience a reclassification of gains or losses into earnings. Such a reclassification could adversely impact our
revenue, margins and results of operations. We cannot predict the impact of future exchange rate fluctuations on
our business and operating results.

Credit Risk

We have certain financial and derivative instruments that subject us to credit risk. These consist primarily of

cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash and cash equivalents, investments, accounts receivable, notes
receivable, advances to suppliers, foreign currency option contracts, foreign currency forward contracts, bond
hedge and warrant transactions. We are exposed to credit losses in the event of nonperformance by the
counterparties to our financial and derivative instruments. Our investment policy requires cash and cash
equivalents, restricted cash and cash equivalents, and investments to be placed with high-quality financial
institutions and limits the amount of credit risk from any one issuer. We additionally perform ongoing credit
evaluations of our customers’ financial condition whenever deemed necessary and generally do not require
collateral.

We enter into agreements with vendors that specify future quantities and pricing of polysilicon to be

supplied for periods up to 10 years. Under certain agreements, we are required to make prepayments to the
vendors over the terms of the arrangements. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, advances to
suppliers totaled $171.6 million and $216.0 million, respectively. One supplier accounted for 99.6% of total
advances to suppliers as of both December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017.

We enter into foreign currency derivative contracts and convertible debenture hedge transactions with
high-quality financial institutions and limit the amount of credit exposure to any single counterparty. The foreign
currency derivative contracts are limited to a time period of a month or less. We regularly evaluate the credit
standing of our counterparty financial institutions.

Interest Rate Risk

We are exposed to interest rate risk because many of our customers depend on debt financing to purchase

our solar power systems. An increase in interest rates could make it difficult for our customers to obtain the
financing necessary to purchase our solar power systems on favorable terms, or at all, and thus lower demand for
our solar power products, reduce revenue and adversely impact our operating results. An increase in interest rates
could lower a customer’s return on investment in a system or make alternative investments more attractive
relative to solar power systems, which, in each case, could cause our customers to seek alternative investments

91

that promise higher returns or demand higher returns from our solar power systems, reduce gross margin and
adversely impact our operating results. This risk is significant to our business because our sales model is highly
sensitive to interest rate fluctuations and the availability of credit, and would be adversely affected by increases
in interest rates or liquidity constraints.

Our interest expense would increase to the extent interest rates rise in connection with our variable interest
rate borrowings. During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018, we repaid all of our variable interest rate borrowings
and as of December 30, 2018, the outstanding principal balance of our variable interest borrowings was
$45.7 million. We do not believe that an immediate 10% increase in interest rates would have a material effect
on our financial statements under potential future borrowings. In addition, lower interest rates would have an
adverse impact on our interest income. Due to the relatively short-term nature of our investment portfolio, we do
not believe that an immediate 10% decrease in interest rates would have a material effect on the fair market
value of our money market funds. Since we believe we have the ability to liquidate substantially all of this
portfolio, we do not expect our operating results or cash flows to be materially affected to any significant degree
by a sudden change in market interest rates on our investment portfolio.

Equity Price Risk Involving Minority Investments in Joint Ventures and Other Non-Public Companies

Our investments held in joint ventures and other non-public companies expose us to equity price risk. As of

December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, investments of $43.7 million and $450.0 million, respectively, are
accounted for using the equity method. As of both December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, investments of
$8.8 million and $35.8 million, respectively, are accounted for using the measurement alternative method.

On June 19, 2018, we completed the sale of our equity interest in the 8point3 Group. The carrying value of

our equity method investments as of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017 included zero and
$382.7 million, respectively, of our investment in the 8point3 Group (See ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements—Note
11. Equity Investments’’ in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form
10-K). We adopted ASC 606 on January 1, 2018, using the full retrospective method, which required us to
restate each prior period presented. We recorded a material amount of profit associated with projects sold to
8point3 Energy Partners in 2015, the majority of which had previously been deferred under real estate
accounting. Accordingly, our carrying value in the 8point3 Group materially increased upon adoption which
required us to evaluate our investment in 8point3 Energy Partners for other-than-temporary impairment. In
accordance with such evaluation, we recognized an other-than-temporary charge on the 8point3 investment
balance during fiscal 2017 amounting to $86.0 million.

On August 9, 2018, we completed the sale of certain assets and intellectual property related to the

production of microinverters to Enphase in exchange for $25.0 million in cash and 7.5 million shares of Enphase
common stock. We received the common stock and a $15.0 million cash payment upon closing, and received the
final $10.0 million cash payment of the purchase price on December 10, 2018. The common stock was recorded
as an equity investment with readily determinable fair value (Level 1), with changes in fair value recognized in
net income. For the fiscal year ended December 30, 2018, we recognized an unrealized loss of $6.4 million
within ‘‘Other, net’’ under other income (expense), net, on the Consolidated Statement of Operations.

These strategic equity investments in third parties are subject to risk of changes in market value could result
in realized impairment losses. We generally do not attempt to reduce or eliminate our market exposure in equity
investments. We monitor these investments for impairment and record reductions in the carrying values when
necessary. Circumstances that indicate an other-than-temporary decline include the valuation ascribed to the
issuing company in subsequent financing rounds, decreases in quoted market prices and declines in operations of
the issuer. There can be no assurance that our equity investments will not face risks of loss in the future.

Interest Rate Risk and Market Price Risk Involving Debt

As of December 30, 2018, we held outstanding convertible debentures with an aggregate face value of

$825.0 million, comprised of $425.0 million of 4.00% debentures due in 2023 and $400.0 million of
0.875% debentures due in 2021. The aggregate estimated fair value of our outstanding convertible debentures
was $648.9 million and $982.8 million as of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively. Estimated
fair values are based on quoted market prices as reported by an independent pricing source. The fair market
value of our debentures is subject to interest rate risk, market price risk and other factors due to the convertible
feature of the debentures. The fair market value of the debentures will generally increase as interest rates fall,

92

and decrease as interest rates rise. When our common stock price is in-the-money relative to these fixed stock
price conversion rates, the fair market value of the debentures will generally increase as the market price of our
common stock increases, and decrease as our common stock’s market price falls, based on each debenture’s
respective fixed conversion rate. The interest and market value changes affect the fair market value of the
debentures, but do not impact our financial position, cash flows or results of operations due to the fixed nature of
the debt obligations, except to the extent increases in the value of our common stock may provide the holders the
right to convert such debentures into stock, or cash, in certain instances, but only applicable during periods when
our common stock is in-the-money relative to such conversion rights. As our common stock price is significantly
below the conversion price for both debentures and therefore unlikely to be exercised by the holders, a 10%
increase or decrease in our common stock will not impact our financial statements.

We also have interest rate risk relating to our other outstanding debt, besides debentures, all of which bear

fixed rates of interest (Refer Note 12. Debt and Credit Sources). The interest and market value changes affect the
fair market value of these debts, but do not impact our financial position, cash flows or results of operations due
to the fixed nature of the debt obligations. A hypothetical 10 basis points increase or decrease on market interest
rates related to these debts would have an immaterial impact on the fair market value of these debts.

93

ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

SUNPOWER CORPORATION

INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

REPORTS OF ERNST & YOUNG LLP, INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING

FIRM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

95

Page

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE LOSS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EQUITY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

97
98
99
100
101
104

94

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

To the Shareholders and the Board of Directors of SunPower Corporation

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of SunPower Corporation (the Company) as of
December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the related consolidated statements of operations, comprehensive
loss, equity, and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 30, 2018, and the related
notes (collectively referred to as the ‘‘consolidated financial statements’’). In our opinion, the consolidated
financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company at December 30,
2018 and December 31, 2017, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in
the period ended December 30, 2018, in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board
(United States) (PCAOB), the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 30, 2018,
based on criteria established in Internal Control-Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring
Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework) and our report dated February 13, 2019 expressed
an unqualified opinion thereon.

Adoption of ASU No. 2014-09

As discussed in Note 1 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company changed its method for recognizing
revenue as a result of the adoption of Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2014-09, Revenue from
Contracts with Customers (Topic 606), and the amendments in ASUs 2015-14, 2016-08, 2016-10 and 2016-12
effective January 4, 2016.

Basis for Opinion

These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express
an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm
registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with
the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange
Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan
and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material
misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of
material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that
respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and
disclosures in the financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and
significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial
statements. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

/s/ Ernst & Young LLP

We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2012.
San Jose, California
February 13, 2019

95

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

To the Shareholders and the Board of Directors of SunPower Corporation

Opinion on Internal Control over Financial Reporting

We have audited SunPower Corporation’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 30, 2018,
based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring
Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework) (the COSO criteria). In our opinion, SunPower
Corporation (the Company) maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting
as of December 30, 2018, based on the COSO criteria.

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board
(United States) (PCAOB), the consolidated balance sheets of the Company as of December 30, 2018 and
December 31, 2017, the related consolidated statements of operations, comprehensive loss, equity, and cash flows
for each of the three years in the period ended December 30, 2018, and the related notes and our report dated
February 13, 2019 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.

Basis for Opinion

The Company’s management is responsible for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting and
for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting included in the accompanying
Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting. Our responsibility is to express an opinion
on the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm
registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with
the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange
Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan
and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether effective internal control over financial
reporting was maintained in all material respects.

Our audit included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that
a material weakness exists, testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based
on the assessed risk, and performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We
believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

Definition and Limitations of Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance
regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in
accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting
includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail,
accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (2) provide reasonable
assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made
only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) provide reasonable
assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the
company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect
misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that
controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the
policies or procedures may deteriorate.

/s/ Ernst & Young LLP

San Jose, California
February 13, 2019

96

SunPower Corporation
Consolidated Balance Sheets
(In thousands, except share par values)

Assets
Current assets:

Cash and cash equivalents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Restricted cash and cash equivalents, current portion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accounts receivable, net1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract assets1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Inventories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Advances to suppliers, current portion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Project assets - plants and land, current portion1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Prepaid expenses and other current assets1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total current assets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Restricted cash and cash equivalents, net of current portion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Restricted long-term marketable securities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Property, plant and equipment, net. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Solar power systems leased and to be leased, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Advances to suppliers, net of current portion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Long-term financing receivables, net - held for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other intangible assets, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other long-term assets1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total assets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Liabilities and Equity
Current liabilities:

Accounts payable1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accrued liabilities1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities, current portion1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Short-term debt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Convertible debt, current portion1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total current liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Long-term debt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Convertible debt, net of current portion1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities, net of current portion1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other long-term liabilities1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Commitments and contingencies (Note 10) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Redeemable noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Equity:

Preferred stock, $0.001 par value; 10,000 shares authorized; none issued and outstanding as of both

December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Common stock, $0.001 par value, 367,500 shares authorized; 152,085 shares issued, and 141,180
outstanding as of December 30, 2018; 149,818 shares issued, and 139,661 outstanding as of
December 31, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Additional paid-in capital
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accumulated deficit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accumulated other comprehensive loss. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Treasury stock, at cost; 10,905 shares of common stock as of December 30, 2018; 10,158 shares of

common stock as of December 31, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total stockholders’ (deficit) equity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total equity (deficit). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total liabilities and equity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

December 30,
2018

December 31,
2017

$

309,407
41,762
175,605
58,994
308,146
37,878
10,796
131,183
1,073,771

12,594
5,955
839,871
92,557
133,694
19,592
12,582
162,033
$ 2,352,649

$

325,550
235,252
104,130
40,074
—
705,006

40,528
818,356
99,509
839,136
2,502,535

—

—

$

435,097
43,709
204,966
35,074
352,829
30,689
103,063
146,209
1,351,636

65,531
6,238
1,147,845
369,218
185,299
330,672
25,519
546,698
$ 4,028,656

$

406,902
231,771
101,723
58,131
299,685
1,098,212

430,634
816,454
133,390
842,342
3,321,032

15,236

—

141
2,463,370
(2,480,988)
(4,150)

(187,069)
(208,696)
58,810
(149,886)
$ 2,352,649

140
2,442,513
(1,669,897)
(3,008)

(181,539)
588,209
104,179
692,388
$ 4,028,656

1

We have related-party balances for transactions made with Total S.A. and its affiliates as well as unconsolidated entities in which we
have a direct equity investment. These related-party balances are recorded within the ‘‘Accounts receivable, net,’’ ‘‘Contract assets,’’
‘‘Project assets - plants and land, current portion,’’ ‘‘Prepaid expenses and other current assets,’’ ‘‘Other long-term assets,’’ ‘‘Accounts
payable,’’ ‘‘Accrued liabilities,’’ ‘‘Contract liabilities, current portion,’’ ‘‘Convertible debt, current portion,’’ ‘‘Convertible debt, net of
current portion,’’ ‘‘Contract liabilities, net of current portion,’’ and ‘‘Other long-term liabilities’’ financial statement line items in our
Consolidated Balance Sheets (see Note 2, Note 8, Note 10, Note 11, Note 12, and Note 13).

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

97

SunPower Corporation
Consolidated Statements of Operations
(In thousands, except per share data)

Revenue:

Solar power systems, components, and other1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Residential leasing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cost of revenue:

Solar power systems, components, and other1,2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Residential leasing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gross profit (loss) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Operating expenses:

Research and development1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sales, general and administrative1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Restructuring charges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loss (gain) on sale and impairment of residential lease assets. . . . . . . .
Gain on business divestiture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total operating expenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Operating loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other income (expense), net:

Interest income . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interest expense1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gain on settlement of preexisting relationships in connection with

acquisition3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loss on equity method investment in connection with acquisition3 . . . .
Goodwill impairment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other, net4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other income (expense), net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Loss before income taxes and equity in earnings (losses) of

unconsolidated investees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Benefit from (provision for) income taxes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Equity in earnings (losses) of unconsolidated investees . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Net loss attributable to noncontrolling interests and redeemable

noncontrolling interests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net loss attributable to stockholders. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

December 30,
2018

Fiscal Year Ended
December 31,
2017

January 1,
2017

$1,453,876
272,209
1,726,085

$ 1,594,941 $2,327,421
225,216
2,552,637

199,106
1,794,047

1,843,150
180,016
2,023,166
(297,081)

1,678,400
134,292
1,812,692
(18,645)

2,163,956
166,862
2,330,818
221,819

81,705
260,111
17,497
251,984
(59,347)
551,950
(849,031)

3,057
(108,011)

—
—
—
55,314
(49,640)

82,247
278,645
21,045
624,335
—
1,006,272
(1,024,917)

116,889
332,757
207,190
(7,263)
—
649,573
(427,754)

2,100
(90,288)

2,652
(61,273)

203,252
—
—
(90,946)
— (147,365)
(6,958)
(100,638)

(87,645)
(175,833)

(898,671)
(1,010)
(17,815)
(917,496)

(1,200,750)
3,944
25,938
(1,170,868)

(528,392)
(7,318)
14,295
(521,415)

106,405

72,780
$ (811,091) $ (929,121) $ (448,635)

241,747

Basic and diluted net loss per share attributable to stockholders . . . . . . . .
Basic and diluted weighted-average shares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$

(5.76) $

(6.67) $

140,825

139,370

(3.25)
137,985

1

2

3

4

We have related-party transactions with Total S.A. and its affiliates as well as unconsolidated entities in which we have a direct equity
investment. These related-party transactions are recorded within the ‘‘Revenue: Solar power systems, components, and other,’’ ‘‘Cost of
revenue: Solar power systems, components, and other,’’ ‘‘Operating expenses: Research and development,’’ ‘‘Operating expenses: Sales,
general and administrative,’’ and ‘‘Other income (expense), net: Interest expense’’ financial statement line items in our Consolidated
Statements of Operations (see Note 2 and Note 11).

During the year ended December 30, 2018, we recognized impairment of property, plant and equipment of $369.2 million of which
$355.1 million is reported in cost of revenue (see Note 6. ‘‘Balance Sheet Components-Impairment of Property, Plant and
Equipment’’).
See Note 4. ‘‘Business Combination and Divestitures’’.
During the year ended December 30, 2018, we recognized profit that had previously been deferred related to historical projects sold to
8point3 Energy Partners along with a gain on the sale of our equity interest in 8point3 Energy Partners within ‘‘Other, net’’ (see Note
11. ‘‘Equity Investments’’).

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

98

SunPower Corporation
Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss
(In thousands)

December 30,
2018

Fiscal Year Ended
December 31,
2017

January 1,
2017

Net loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $(917,496) $(1,170,868) $(521,415)
Components of other comprehensive income (loss):

Translation adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net change in derivatives (Note 13) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net income (loss) on long-term pension liability adjustment . . . . . . . . . . .
Unrealized gain on investments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Income taxes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total other comprehensive income (loss) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(4,490)
397
2,901
—
50

(1,142)

5,638
(1,764)
(64)
(145)
565

4,230

(1,085)
(4,739)
6,283
—
326

785

Total comprehensive loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(918,638)

(1,166,638)

(520,630)

Comprehensive loss attributable to noncontrolling interests and

redeemable noncontrolling interests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

106,405

241,747

72,780

Comprehensive loss attributable to stockholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $(812,233) $ (924,891) $(447,850)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

99

SunPower Corporation
Consolidated Statements of Equity
(In thousands)

Common Stock

Additional
Paid-in
Capital

Treasury
Stock

Accumulated
Other
Comprehensive
Income (Loss)

Accumulated
Deficit

Total
Stockholders’
Equity (Deficit)

Shares Value

Noncontrolling
Interests

Total
Equity (Deficit)

136,711 $137 $2,359,917 $(155,265)
—

— —

—

$(8,023)
—

$ (747,617)
(448,635)

$1,449,149
(448,635)

$ 59,490
3,036

$ 1,508,639
(445,599)

Redeemable
Noncontrolling
Interests

$ 69,104
(75,817)

—

—
—

—

—

— —

—

2,836

3
— —

—
56,110

— —

(2,822)

— —

(2,810)

—

—
—

—

—

—

785

—
—

—

—

—

—
—

500,820
—

500,820
785

3
56,110

(2,822)

(2,810)

—
—

—

—

—

—
—

—

—
—

—

—

500,820
785

3
56,110

(2,822)

(2,810)

interests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

117,120

— —

—

(6,786)
—

— —
(1)

(1,039)

—
—
— (21,518)

—

29,215

29,215

—
(21,519)

(12,253)
—

(12,253)
(21,519)

$ 103,621
(152,926)

138,508 $139 $2,410,395 $(176,783)
—

— —

—

$(7,238)
—

$ (695,432)
(929,121)

$1,531,081
(929,121)

$ 79,488
(88,821)

$ 1,610,569
(1,017,942)

—
—

—
—

— —
— —

—
—

1,739

2
— —

—
32,118

71,928

— —

—

—
—

—
—

—

(7,387)
—

— —
(1)

(589)

—
—
— (4,756)

—
4,230

(45,344)
—

(45,344)
4,230

—
—

—

—
—

—
—

—

—
—

2
32,118

—
(4,757)

$ 15,236
(29,171)
—

139,658 $140 $2,442,513 $(181,539)
—
—

— —
— —

—
—

$(3,008)
—
(1,142)

$(1,669,897)
(811,091)
—

$ 588,209
(811,091)
(1,142)

—
—

—
—

(45,344)
4,230

2
32,118

—

125,500

125,500

(11,988)
—

$104,179
(77,235)
—

$

(11,988)
(4,757)

692,388
(888,326)
(1,142)

—
—

2,267

2
— —

—
25,790

36,734

— —

—

—
—

—

(7,425)
—

— —
(1)

(747)

—
—
— (5,530)

(15,374)
—

— —
— —

—
(4,933)

—
—

—
—

—

—
—

—
—

—
—

—

—
—

—

2
25,790

—
—

2
25,790

—

114,470

114,470

—
(5,531)

(13,438)
—

—
(4,933)

(61,766)
(7,400)

(13,438)
(5,531)

(61,766)
(12,333)

Balances at January 3, 2016 . . . . . .
Net income (loss) . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cumulative-effect upon adoption of

ASC 606. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other comprehensive loss . . . . . . . . .
Issuance of restricted stock to

employees, net of cancellations . . . .
Stock-based compensation expense . . .
Tax benefit from convertible debt

interest deduction . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tax benefit from stock-based

compensation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Contributions from noncontrolling

Distributions to noncontrolling

interests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Purchases of treasury stock . . . . . . . .

Balances at January 1, 2017 . . . . . .
Net loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cumulative-effect upon adoption of

ASU 2016-09 and ASU 2016-16 . . .
Other comprehensive loss . . . . . . . . .
Issuance of restricted stock to

employees, net of cancellations . . . .
Stock-based compensation expense . . .
Contributions from noncontrolling

interests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Distributions to noncontrolling

interests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Purchases of treasury stock . . . . . . . .

Balances at December 31, 2017 . . . .
Net loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other comprehensive loss . . . . . . . . .
Issuance of restricted stock to

employees, net of cancellations . . . .
Stock-based compensation expense . . .
Contributions from noncontrolling

interests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Distributions to noncontrolling

interests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Purchases of treasury stock . . . . . . . .
Reduction of non-controlling interest
due to sale of interest in residential
lease portfolio1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Noncontrolling interest buyout . . . . . .

Balances at December 30, 2018 . . . .

$

— 141,178 $141 $2,463,370 $(187,069)

$(4,150)

$(2,480,988)

$ (208,696)

$ 58,810

$ (149,886)

1

See Note 4 ‘‘Business Combination and Divestitures’’.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

100

SunPower Corporation
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
(In thousands)

December 30,
2018

Fiscal Year Ended
December 31,
2017

January 1,
2017

Cash flows from operating activities:
Net loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $(917,496) $(1,170,868) $(521,415)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:

Depreciation and amortization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Stock-based compensation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Non-cash interest expense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Non-cash restructuring charges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gain on settlement of preexisting relationships in connection with

acquisition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dividend from equity method investees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Equity in (earnings) losses of unconsolidated investees. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Excess tax benefit from stock-based compensation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gain on sale of equity investments, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gain on business divestiture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Unrealized loss on equity investments with readily determinable fair

value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deferred income taxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Impairment of equity method investment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Goodwill impairment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Impairment of property, plant and equipment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loss (gain) on sale and impairment of residential lease assets . . . . . . . . . .
Other, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accounts receivable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Inventories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Project assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Prepaid expenses and other assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Long-term financing receivables, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Advances to suppliers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accounts payable and other accrued liabilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net cash used in operating activities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash flows from investing activities: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Purchases of property, plant and equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash paid for solar power systems, leased and to be leased . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash paid for solar power systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Purchases of marketable securities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash outflow from sale of residential lease portfolio, net of cash sold . . .
Proceeds from sales or maturities of marketable securities . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proceeds from sale of cost method investments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Payments to 8point3 Energy Partners LP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash paid for acquisitions, net of cash acquired . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash paid for intangibles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dividend from equity method investees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proceeds from sale of equity method investments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proceeds from business divestiture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash paid for investments in unconsolidated investees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

127,204
26,353
15,346
—

—
3,947
17,815
—
(54,196)
(59,347)

6,375
(6,862)
—
—
369,168
251,984
(6,796)

(175)
(43,509)
(39,174)
39,512
22,763
(182,937)
44,417
(127,286)
(30,495)
(543,389)

(44,906)
(68,612)
(41,808)
—
(28,004)
—
33,402
—
(17,000)
—
12,952
420,306
23,257
(14,687)
274,900

185,283
34,674
18,390

170,537
61,498
1,057
— 166,717

— (203,252)
6,949
(14,295)
(2,810)
—
—

30,091
(25,938)
—
(5,346)
—

—
(6,966)
89,564

—
(6,611)
90,946
— 147,365
—
—
(7,263)
624,335
4,793
1,298

(1,191)
10,660
(38,236)
2,393
110,530
(123,674)
68,767
(216,349)
145,171
(267,412)

(33,465)
62,161
(70,448)
(3,601)
3,187
(172,272)
74,341
(18,780)
(47,622)
(312,283)

(187,094)
(69,791)
(84,289)
(86,539)
(38,746)
(126,548)
(4,955)
(1,306)
—
—
6,210
—
—
—
—
(9,838)
— (24,003)
(521)
—
—
3,773
—
5,954
—
—
(11,547)
(18,627)
(354,783)
(293,084)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

101

December 30,
2018

Fiscal Year Ended
December 31,
2017

January 1,
2017

Cash flows from financing activities:

Cash paid for acquisitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proceeds from bank loans and other debt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Repayment of 0.75% debentures due 2018, bank loans and other debt . . .
Proceeds from issuance of non-recourse residential financing, net of

issuance costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Repayment of non-recourse residential financing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contributions from noncontrolling interests and redeemable

—
227,676
(535,252)

—
339,253
(358,317)

(5,714)
113,645
(143,601)

192,287
(17,358)

89,612
(6,888)

183,990
(37,932)

noncontrolling interests attributable to residential projects . . . . . . . . . . .

151,204

196,628

146,334

Distributions to noncontrolling interests and redeemable noncontrolling

interests attributable to residential projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(21,918)

(18,228)

(19,039)

Proceeds from issuance of non-recourse power plant and commercial

financing, net of issuance costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Repayment of non-recourse power plant and commercial financing. . . . . .
Contributions from noncontrolling interests attributable to power plant

126,020
(31,282)

527,897
(176,069)

738,822
(795,209)

and commercial projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

—

800

—

Purchases of stock for tax withholding obligations on vested restricted

stock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net cash provided by financing activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(5,530)
85,847

(4,756)
589,932

(21,517)
159,779

Effect of exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash

and restricted cash equivalents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2,068

689

735

Net (decrease) increase in cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and

restricted cash equivalents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(180,574)

30,125

(506,552)

Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents,

beginning of period1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

544,337

514,212

1,020,764

Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents, end

of period1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 363,763

$ 544,337 $ 514,212

Non-cash transactions:

Assignment of residential lease receivables to third parties. . . . . . . . . . . . . $
Stock consideration received from business divestiture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 42,600
Acquisition of noncontrolling interests funded by Mezzanine Loan

— $
$

129 $
— $

4,290
—

proceeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 12,400

$

— $

—

Costs of solar power systems, leased and to be leased, sourced from

existing inventory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 36,384

$ 57,688 $

57,422

Costs of solar power systems, leased and to be leased, funded by

liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $

3,631

$

5,527 $

3,026

Costs of solar power systems under sale-leaseback financing

arrangements, sourced from project assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 86,540
8,214

Property, plant and equipment acquisitions funded by liabilities. . . . . . . . . $
Exchange of receivables for an investment in an unconsolidated investee . $
9,000
Acquisition funded by liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $
Contractual obligations satisfied with inventory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 56,840
Assumption of debt by buyer upon sale of equity interest . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 27,321
Assumption of mezzanine loan by SunStrong in connection with sale of

27,971
$ 110,375 $
43,817
$ 15,706 $
— $
2,890
— $ 103,354
—
—

— $
$
$ 34,675 $
$ 196,104 $

residential lease assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 106,958

Assumption of back leverage loans by SunStrong in connection with sale

of residential lease assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 454,630
Retained interest in SunStrong lease portfolio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $
9,750
Receivables in connection with sale of residential lease portfolio . . . . . . . $ 12,510

$

$
$
$

— $

— $
— $
— $

—

—
—
—

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

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Supplemental cash flow information:

Cash paid for interest, net of amount capitalized . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash paid for income taxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$99,204
$ 7,800

$59,885
$12,795

$35,770
$35,414

December 30,
2018

Fiscal Year Ended
December 31,
2017

January 1,
2017

1

‘‘Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents’’ balance consisted of ‘‘Cash and cash equivalents’’, ‘‘Restricted
cash and cash equivalents, current portion’’ and ‘‘Restricted cash and cash equivalents, net of current portion’’ financial statement line
items in the Consolidated Balance Sheets for the respective periods.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

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Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements

Note 1. ORGANIZATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Organization

SunPower Corporation (together with its subsidiaries, ‘‘SunPower,’’ ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ and ‘‘our‘‘) is a leading

global energy company that delivers complete solar solutions to residential, commercial, and power plant
customers worldwide through an array of hardware, software, and financing options and through utility-scale
solar power system construction and development capabilities, operations and maintenance (‘‘O&M’’) services,
and ‘‘Smart Energy‘‘ solutions. SunPower’s Smart Energy initiative is designed to add layers of intelligent
control to homes, buildings and grids - all personalized through easy-to-use customer interfaces. Of all the solar
cells commercially available to the mass market, we believe our solar cells have the highest solar power
conversion efficiency, a measurement of the amount of sunlight converted by the solar cell into electricity.
SunPower is a majority-owned subsidiary of Total Solar International SAS (‘‘Total’’), formerly Total Energies
Nouvelles Activités USA, a subsidiary of Total S.A. (‘‘Total S.A.’’) (see ‘‘Note 2. Transactions with Total and
Total S.A’’).

In the fourth quarter of 2018, in connection with our efforts to improve operational focus and transparency, drive
overhead accountability into segment operating results, and increase strategic agility across value chain from our
upstream business’ core strength in manufacturing and technology and our downstream business’ core strength in
offering complete solutions in residential and commercial markets, we reorganized our segment reporting to an
upstream and downstream structure. Previously, we operated under three end-customer segments comprised of
our (i) Residential Segment, (ii) Commercial Segment, and (iii) Power Plan Segment. Historically, the Residential
Segment referred to sales of solar energy solutions to residential end-customers, the Commercial Segment
referred to sales of energy solutions to commercial and public entity end-customers, and the Power Plant
Segment referred to our large-scale solar products and systems and component sales.

Under the new segmentation, SunPower Energy Services Segment (‘‘SunPower Energy Services‘‘ or
‘‘Downstream’’) refers to sales of solar energy solutions in the North America region previously included in the
legacy Residential Segment and Commercial Segment (collectively previously referred to as ‘‘Distributed
Generation’’ or ‘‘DG’’) including direct sales of turn-key engineering, procurement and construction (‘‘EPC’’)
services, sales to our third-party dealer network, sales of energy under power purchase agreements (‘‘PPAs’’),
storage solutions, cash sales and long-term leases directly to end customers, and sales to resellers. SunPower
Energy Services Segment also includes sales of our global Operations and Maintenance (‘‘O&M’’) services.
SunPower Technologies Segment (‘‘SunPower Technologies‘‘ or ‘‘Upstream’’) refers to our technology
development, worldwide solar panel manufacturing operations, equipment supply to resellers and commercial and
residential end-customers outside of North America (‘‘International DG’’), and worldwide power plant project
development and project sales. Upon reorganization, some support functions and responsibilities, which
previously resided within the corporate function, have been shifted to each segment, including financial planning
and analysis, legal, treasury, tax and accounting support and services, among others.

The reorganization provides our management with a comprehensive financial overview of our key
businesses. The application of this structure permits us to align our strategic business initiatives and corporate
goals in a manner that best focuses our businesses and support operations for success.

Our Chief Executive Officer, as the chief operating decision maker (‘‘CODM’’), reviews our business,
manages resource allocations and measures performance of our activities among the SunPower Energy Services
Segment and SunPower Technologies Segment.

Reclassifications of prior period segment information have been made to conform to the current period
presentation. These changes did not materially affect our previously reported Consolidated Financial Statements.
See ‘‘Note 18. Segment Information‘‘ for additional discussion.

Liquidity

Challenging industry conditions and a competitive environment extended throughout fiscal 2018. Our net
losses, resulting in a net use of our available cash, continued in fiscal 2018 and are expected to continue through
fiscal 2019. Despite the challenging industry conditions, including uncertainty around the regulatory environment,
we believe that our cash and cash equivalents, including cash expected to be generated from operations, will be

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sufficient to meet our obligations over the next 12 months from the date of the issuance of our financial
statements. Although we have been successful in our ability to divest certain investments and non-core assets,
such as the divestiture of our equity interest in 8point3 Energy Partners LP (Note 11. Equity Investments), the
sale of certain assets and intellectual property related to the production of microinverters (Note 4. Business
Combinations and Divestitures), and the sale of membership interests in our Residential Lease Portfolio (Note 4.
Business Combinations and Divestitures) and have secured other sources of financing in connection with our
short-term liquidity needs, as well as realizing cash savings resulting from restructuring actions and cost
reduction initiatives put in place in the third and fourth quarters of fiscal 2016 and the first and second quarter of
fiscal 2018, we continue to focus on improving our overall operating performance and liquidity, including
managing cash flow and working capital.

We also have the ability to enhance our available cash by borrowing up to $95.0 million under a revolving credit
facility (the ‘‘Revolver’’) with Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank (‘‘Credit Agricole’’) pursuant to a
Letter Agreement executed by us and Total S.A. on May 8, 2017 (the ‘‘Letter Agreement’’) through August 26,
2019, the expiration date of the Letter Agreement (see ‘‘Note 2. Transactions with Total and Total S.A.’’).

Although we have historically been able to generate liquidity, we cannot predict, with certainty, the outcome of
our actions to generate liquidity as planned.

Basis of Presentation and Preparation

Principles of Consolidation

The consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally

accepted in the United States of America (‘‘United States‘‘ or ‘‘U.S.,’’ and such accounting principles, ‘‘U.S.
GAAP’’) and include the accounts of SunPower, all of our subsidiaries and special purpose entities, as
appropriate under consolidation accounting guidelines. Intercompany transactions and balances have been
eliminated in consolidation. The assets of the special purpose entities that we establish in connection with certain
project financing arrangements for customers are not designed to be available to service our general liabilities
and obligations.

Reclassifications

Certain prior period balances have been reclassified to conform to the current period presentation in our

consolidated financial statements and the accompanying notes.

Fiscal Periods

We have a 52-to-53-week fiscal year that ends on the Sunday closest to December 31. Accordingly, every

fifth or sixth year will be a 53-week fiscal year. Fiscal 2018, 2017 and 2016 are 52-week fiscal years. Our fiscal
2018 ended on December 30, 2018, fiscal 2017 ended on December 31, 2017 and fiscal 2016 ended on
January 1, 2017.

Management Estimates

The preparation of the consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires us to make

estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the consolidated financial statements and
accompanying notes. Significant estimates in these consolidated financial statements include revenue recognition,
specifically the nature and timing of satisfaction of performance obligations, standalone selling price of
performance obligations and variable consideration; allowances for doubtful accounts receivable; recoverability of
financing receivables related to residential leases, inventory and project asset write-downs; stock-based
compensation; long-lived asset impairment, specifically estimates for valuation assumptions including discount
rates and future cash flows, economic useful lives of property, plant and equipment, intangible assets, and
investments; fair value and residual value of solar power systems, including those subject to residential operating
leases; fair value of financial instruments; valuation of contingencies such as accrued warranty; the measurement
of fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed in a business combination; the valuation of retained equity
interests in divestitures; the fair value of indemnities provided to customers and other parties, and income taxes
and tax valuation allowances. Actual results could materially differ from those estimates.

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Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The fair value of a financial instrument is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to
transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The carrying
values of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, and accounts payable approximate their respective fair
values due to their short-term maturities. Equity investments with readily determinable fair value are carried at
fair value based on quoted market prices or estimated based on market conditions and risks existing at each
balance sheet date. Equity investments without readily determinable fair value are measured at cost less
impairment, and are adjusted for observable price changes in orderly transactions for an identical or similar
investment of the same issuer. Derivative financial instruments are carried at fair value based on quoted market
prices for financial instruments with similar characteristics. The effective portion of derivative financial
instruments is excluded from earnings and reported as a component of ‘‘Accumulated other comprehensive loss‘‘
in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The ineffective portion of derivatives financial instruments are included in
‘‘Other, net‘‘ in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

Comprehensive Income (Loss)

Comprehensive income (loss) is defined as the change in equity during a period from non-owner sources.
Our comprehensive income (loss) for each period presented is comprised of (i) our net income (loss); (ii) foreign
currency translation adjustment of our foreign subsidiaries whose assets and liabilities are translated from their
respective functional currencies at exchange rates in effect at the balance sheet date, and revenues and expenses
are translated at average exchange rates prevailing during the applicable period; (iii) changes in unrealized gains
or losses, net of tax, for the effective portion of derivatives designated as cash flow hedges; and (iv) net income
(loss) on long-term pension liability adjustment (see Note 13. Derivative Financial Instruments).

Cash Equivalents

Highly liquid investments with original or remaining maturities of ninety days or less at the date of

purchase are considered cash equivalents.

Cash in Restricted Accounts

We maintain cash and cash equivalents in restricted accounts pursuant to various letters of credit, surety
bonds, loan agreements, and other agreements in the normal course of business. We also hold debt securities,
consisting of Philippine government bonds, which are classified as ‘‘Restricted long-term marketable securities‘‘
on our Consolidated Balance Sheets as they are maintained as collateral for present and future business
transactions within the country (see Note 6. Balance Sheet Components).

Short-Term and Long-Term Investments

We may invest in money market funds and debt securities. In general, investments with original maturities
of greater than ninety days and remaining maturities of one year or less are classified as short-term investments,
and investments with maturities of more than one year are classified as long-term investments. Investments with
maturities beyond one year may be classified as short-term based on their highly liquid nature and because such
investments represent the investment of cash that is available for current operations. Despite the long-term
maturities, we have the ability and intent, if necessary, to liquidate any of these investments in order to meet our
working capital needs within our normal operating cycles. We have classified these investments as
available-for-sale securities.

Inventories

Inventories are accounted for on a first-in-first-out basis and are valued at the lower of cost or net realizable

value. We evaluate the realizability of our inventories, including purchase commitments under fixed-price
long-term supply agreements, based on assumptions about expected demand and market conditions. Our
assumption of expected demand is developed based on our analysis of bookings, sales backlog, sales pipeline,
market forecast, and competitive intelligence. Our assumption of expected demand is compared to available
inventory, production capacity, future polysilicon purchase commitments, available third-party inventory, and
growth plans. Our factory production plans, which drive materials requirement planning, are established based on

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our assumptions of expected demand. We respond to reductions in expected demand by temporarily reducing
manufacturing output and adjusting expected valuation assumptions as necessary. In addition, expected demand
by geography has changed historically due to changes in the availability and size of government mandates and
economic incentives.

We evaluate the terms of our long-term inventory purchase agreements with suppliers, including joint
ventures, for the procurement of polysilicon, ingots, wafers, and solar cells and establishes accruals for estimated
losses on adverse purchase commitments as necessary, such as lower of cost or net realizable value adjustments,
forfeiture of advanced deposits and liquidated damages. Obligations related to non-cancellable purchase orders
for inventories match current and forecasted sales orders that will consume these ordered materials and actual
consumption of these ordered materials are compared to expected demand regularly. We anticipate total
obligations related to long-term supply agreements for inventories will be realized because quantities are less
than our expected demand for our solar power products for the foreseeable future and because the raw materials
subject to these long-term supply agreements are not subject to spoilage or other factors that would deteriorate its
usability; however, if raw materials inventory balances temporarily exceed near-term demand, we may elect to
sell such inventory to third parties to optimize working capital needs. In addition, because the purchase prices
required by our long-term polysilicon agreements are significantly higher than current market prices for similar
materials, if we are not able to profitably utilize this material in our operations or elect to sell near-term excess,
we may incur additional losses. Other market conditions that could affect the realizable value of our inventories
and are periodically evaluated by us include historical inventory turnover ratio, anticipated sales price, new
product development schedules, the effect new products might have on the sale of existing products, product
obsolescence, customer concentrations, the current market price of polysilicon as compared to the price in our
fixed-price arrangements, and product merchantability, among other factors. If, based on assumptions about
expected demand and market conditions, we determine that the cost of inventories exceeds its net realizable
value or inventory is excess or obsolete, or we enter into arrangements with third parties for the sale of raw
materials that do not allow us to recover our current contractually committed price for such raw materials, we
record a write-down or accrual equal to the difference between the cost of inventories and the estimated net
realizable value, which may be material. If actual market conditions are more favorable, we may have higher
gross margin when products that have been previously written down are sold in the normal course of business
(see Note 6. Balance Sheet Components).

Solar Power Systems Leased and to be Leased

Solar power systems leased to residential customers under operating leases are stated at cost, less

accumulated depreciation and are amortized to their estimated residual value over the life of the lease term of up
to 20 years.

Solar power systems to be leased represent systems that are under installation or which have not been
interconnected, which will be depreciated as solar power systems leased to customers when the respective
systems are completed, interconnected and subsequently leased to residential customers under operating leases.

Initial direct costs for operating leases are capitalized and amortized over the term of the related customer

lease agreements.

During fiscal 2018 and 2017, events and circumstances indicated that the carrying value of our solar power

systems leased and to be leased might not be recoverable. We determined it was necessary to evaluate the
potential for impairment in our ability to recover the carrying amounts of these assets. Estimates and judgments
about future cash flows were made using an income approach defined as Level 3 inputs under fair value
measurement standards. The income approach, specifically a discounted cash flow analysis, included assumptions
for, among others, forecasted lease income, expenses, default rates, residual value of these lease assets and
long-term discount rates, some of which require significant judgment by us. In accordance with such evaluation,
we recognized a non-cash impairment charge on the Consolidated Statement of Operations. For additional
information on the related impairment charge, see ‘‘Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes
to Consolidated Financial Statements—Note 7. Leasing—Impairment of Residential Lease Assets.’’

Financing Receivables

Leases are classified as either operating or sales-type leases in accordance with the relevant accounting
guidelines. Financing receivables are generated by solar power systems leased to residential customers under
sales-type leases. Financing receivables are initially recorded based on the expected gross minimum lease

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payments to be received from customers over a period commensurate with the remaining lease term of up to
20 years and the systems estimated residual value, net of unearned income and allowance for estimated losses.
Initial direct costs for sales-type leases are recognized as cost of sales when the solar power systems are placed
in service.

Due to the homogeneous nature of our leasing transactions, we manage our financing receivables on an
aggregate basis when assessing credit risk. We also consider the credit risk profile for our lease customers to be
homogeneous due to the criteria we use to approve customers for our residential leasing program, which among
other things, requires a minimum ‘‘fair’’ FICO credit quality. Accordingly, we do not regularly categorize our
financing receivables by credit risk.

We recognize an allowance for losses on financing receivables in an amount equal to the probable losses net

of recoveries. We maintain reserve percentages on past-due receivable aging buckets and base such percentages
on several factors, including consideration of historical credit losses and information derived from industry
benchmarking. We also place doubtful financing receivables on nonaccrual status and discontinue accrual of
interest. Financing receivables over 180 days are determined to be delinquent.

During fiscal 2018 and 2017, events and circumstances indicated that we might not be able to collect all

amounts due according to the contractual terms of the underlying lease agreements. We determined it was
necessary to evaluate the potential for allowances in our ability to collect these receivables. Estimates and
judgments about future cash flows were made using an income approach defined as Level 3 inputs under fair
value measurement standards. The income approach, specifically a discounted cash flow analysis, included
assumptions for, among others, forecasted lease income, expenses, default rates, residual value of these lease
assets and long-term discount rates, all of which require significant judgment by us. In accordance with such
evaluation, we recognized an allowance for losses on the Consolidated Statement of Operations. For additional
information on the related impairment charge (see Note 7. Leasing—Impairment of Residential Lease Assets).

Property, Plant and Equipment

Property, plant and equipment are stated at cost, less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation, excluding
solar power systems leased to residential customers and those associated with sale-leaseback transactions under
the financing method, is computed using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets as
presented below. Solar power systems leased to residential customers and those associated with sale-leaseback
transactions under the financing method are depreciated using the straight-line method to their estimated residual
values over the lease terms of up to 20 years. Leasehold improvements are amortized over the shorter of the
estimated useful lives of the assets or the remaining term of the lease. Repairs and maintenance costs are
expensed as incurred.

Buildings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Leasehold improvements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Manufacturing equipment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Computer equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Solar power systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Furniture and fixtures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Useful Lives
in Years

20 to 30
1 to 20
7 to 15
2 to 7
30
3 to 5

Interest Capitalization

The interest cost associated with major development and construction projects is capitalized and included in

the cost of the property, plant and equipment or project assets. Interest capitalization ceases once a project is
substantially complete or no longer undergoing construction activities to prepare it for its intended use. When no
debt is specifically identified as being incurred in connection with a construction project, we capitalize interest
on amounts expended on the project at our weighted average cost of borrowed money.

Long-Lived Assets

We evaluate our long-lived assets, including property, plant and equipment, solar power systems leased and

to be leased, and other intangible assets with finite lives, for impairment whenever events or changes in
circumstances arise. This evaluation includes consideration of technology obsolescence that may indicate that the

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carrying value of such assets may not be recoverable. The assessments require significant judgment in
determining whether such events or changes have occurred. Factors considered important that could result in an
impairment review include significant changes in the manner of use of a long-lived asset or in its physical
condition, a significant adverse change in the business climate or economic trends that could affect the value of a
long-lived asset, an accumulation of costs significantly in excess of the amount originally expected for the
acquisition or construction of a long-lived asset, significant under-performance relative to expected historical or
projected future operating results, or a current expectation that, more likely than not, a long-lived asset will be
sold or otherwise disposed of significantly before the end of its previously estimated useful life.

For purposes of the impairment evaluation, long-lived assets are grouped with other assets and liabilities at
the lowest level for which identifiable cash flows are largely independent of the cash flows of other assets and
liabilities. We must exercise judgment in assessing such groupings and levels. We then compare the estimated
future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by the asset group (including the eventual
disposition of the asset group at residual value) to the asset group’s carrying value to determine if the asset group
is recoverable. If our estimate of future undiscounted net cash flows is insufficient to recover the carrying value
of the asset group, we record an impairment loss in the amount by which the carrying value of the asset group
exceeds the fair value. Fair value is generally measured based on (i) internally developed discounted cash flows
for the asset group, (ii) third-party valuations, and (iii) quoted market prices, if available. If the fair value of an
asset group is determined to be less than its carrying value, an impairment in the amount of the difference is
recorded in the period that the impairment indicator occurs. For additional information on the impairment charge
recorded in the year ended December 30, 2018 and the underlying fair value assumptions, see ‘‘Note 6. Balance
Sheet Components-Impairment of Property, Plant and Equipment’’ and ‘‘Note 7. Leasing-Impairment of
Residential Lease Assets.’’

Product Warranties

We generally provide a 25-year standard warranty for the solar panels that we manufacture for defects in

materials and workmanship. The warranty provides that we will repair or replace any defective solar panels
during the warranty period. In addition, we pass through to customers’ long-term warranties from the original
equipment manufacturers of certain system components, such as inverters. Warranties of 25 years from solar
panel suppliers are standard in the solar industry, while certain system components carry warranty periods
ranging from five to 20 years.

In addition, we generally warrant our workmanship on installed systems for periods ranging up to 25 years

and also provide a separate system output performance warranty to customers that have subscribed to our
post-installation monitoring and maintenance services which expires upon termination of the post-installation
monitoring and maintenance services related to the system. The warrantied system output performance level
varies by system depending on the characteristics of the system and the negotiated agreement with the customer,
and the level declines over time to account for the expected degradation of the system. Actual system output is
typically measured annually for purposes of determining whether warrantied performance levels have been met.
The warranty excludes system output shortfalls attributable to force majeure events, customer curtailment,
irregular weather, and other similar factors. In the event that the system output falls below the warrantied
performance level during the applicable warranty period, and provided that the shortfall is not caused by a factor
that is excluded from the performance warranty, the warranty provides that we will pay the customer a liquidated
damage based on the value of the shortfall of energy produced relative to the applicable warrantied performance
level.

We maintain reserves to cover the expected costs that could result from these warranties. Our expected costs

are generally in the form of product replacement or repair. Warranty reserves are based on our best estimate of
such costs and are recognized as a cost of revenue. We continuously monitor product returns for warranty
failures and maintains a reserve for the related warranty expenses based on various factors including historical
warranty claims, results of accelerated lab testing, field monitoring, vendor reliability estimates, and data on
industry averages for similar products. Due to the potential for variability in these underlying factors, the
difference between our estimated costs and our actual costs could be material to our consolidated financial
statements. If actual product failure rates or the frequency or severity of reported claims differ from our estimates
or if there are delays in our responsiveness to outages, we may be required to revise our estimated warranty
liability. Historically, warranty costs have been within our expectations (see Note 10. Commitments and
Contingencies).

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Revenue Recognition

Effective January 1, 2018, we adopted Accounting Standards Update No. 2014-09—Revenue from Contracts

with Customers (Topic 606), as amended (‘‘ASC 606’’). For additional information on the new standard and the
impact to our financial results, refer to the section Impact to Previously Reported Consolidated Financial
Statements below.

Module and Component Sales

We sell our solar panels and balance of system components primarily to dealers, system integrators and
distributors, and recognizes revenue at a point in time when control of such products transfers to the customer,
which generally occurs upon shipment or delivery depending on the terms of the contracts with the customer.
There are no rights of return. Other than standard warranty obligations, there are no significant post-shipment
obligations (including installation, training or customer acceptance clauses) with any of our customers that could
have an impact on revenue recognition. Our revenue recognition policy is consistent across all geographic areas.

Solar Power System Sales and Engineering, Procurement, and Construction Services

We design, manufacture and sell rooftop and ground-mounted solar power systems under construction and

development agreements. Engineering, procurement and construction (‘‘EPC’’) projects governed by customer
contracts that require us to deliver functioning solar power systems are generally completed within three to
twelve months from commencement of construction. Construction on large projects may be completed within
eighteen to thirty-six months, depending on the size and location. We recognize revenue from EPC services over
time as our performance creates or enhances an energy generation asset controlled by the customer. We use an
input method based on cost incurred as we believe that this method most accurately reflects our progress toward
satisfaction of the performance obligation. Under this method, revenue arising from fixed-price construction
contracts is recognized as work is performed based on the ratio of costs incurred to date to the total estimated
costs at completion of the performance obligations.

Incurred costs include all direct material, labor and subcontract costs, and those indirect costs related to

contract performance, such as indirect labor, supplies, and tools. Project material costs are included in incurred
costs when the project materials have been installed by being permanently attached or fitted to the solar power
system as required by the project’s engineering design. Cost-based input methods of revenue recognition require
us to make estimates of net contract revenues and costs to complete the projects. In making such estimates,
significant judgment is required to evaluate assumptions related to the amount of net contract revenues, including
the impact of any performance incentives, liquidated damages, and other payments to customers. Significant
judgment is also required to evaluate assumptions related to the costs to complete the projects, including
materials, labor, contingencies, and other system costs. If the estimated total costs on any contract are greater
than the net contract revenues, we recognize the entire estimated loss in the period the loss becomes known and
can be reasonably estimated.

For sales of solar power systems in which we sell a controlling interest in the project to a customer, we
recognize all of the revenue for the consideration received, including the fair value of the noncontrolling interest
obtained or retained, and in circumstances where we maintain significant influence over the retained
noncontrolling interest, we defer any profit associated with our retained equity stake through ‘‘Equity in earnings
of unconsolidated investees.’’ The deferred profit is subsequently recognized on a straight-line basis over the
useful life of the underlying system. We estimate the fair value of the noncontrolling interest using an income
approach based on the valuation of the entire solar project. Further, in situations where we sell membership
interests in our project entities to third-party tax equity investors in return for tax benefits (generally federal
and/or state investment tax credits and accelerated depreciation), we view the sale of the rights to tax attributes
associated with ownership of the underlying solar systems as a distinct performance obligation in the scope of
ASC 606 because it is an output of our ordinary activities consistent with the guidance in ASC 606-10-15-3. The
sale of the rights to the tax attributes is recognized at a point in time when the customers are eligible to claim
the tax benefits, generally at substantial completion of the solar power projects. The fair value of the tax
attributes generally begins with an independent third-party appraisal which supports the eligible cost basis for the
qualifying solar energy property. In certain circumstances, we have provided indemnification to customers and
investors under which we are contractually obligated to compensate these parties for losses they may suffer as a
result of reduction in tax benefits received under the investment tax credit and U.S. Treasury Department’s cash
grant programs. Refer to ‘‘Note 10. Commitments and Contingencies’’ for further details.

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Our arrangements may contain clauses such as contingent repurchase options, delay liquidated damages or

early performance bonus, most favorable pricing, or other provisions that can either increase or decrease the
transaction price. These variable amounts generally are awarded upon achievement of certain performance
metrics or milestones. Variable consideration is estimated at each measurement date at its most likely amount to
the extent that it is probable that a significant reversal of cumulative revenue recognized will not occur and
true-ups are applied prospectively as such estimates change.

Changes in estimates for sales of systems and EPC services occur for a variety of reasons, including but not

limited to (i) construction plan accelerations or delays, (ii) product cost forecast changes, (iii) change orders, or
(iv) changes in other information used to estimate costs. The cumulative effect of revisions to transaction prices
or input cost estimates are recorded in the period in which the revisions to estimates are identified and the
amounts can be reasonably estimated.

Operations and Maintenance

We offer our customers various levels of post-installation operations and maintenance (‘‘O&M’’) services

with the objective of optimizing our customers’ electrical energy production over the life of the system. We
determine that the post-installation systems monitoring and maintenance qualifies as a separate performance
obligation. Post-installation monitoring and maintenance is deferred at the time the contract is executed, based on
the estimate of selling price on a standalone basis, and is recognized to revenue over time as customers receive
and consume benefits of such services. The non-cancellable term of the O&M contracts are typically 90 days for
commercial and residential customers and 180 days for power plant customers.

We typically provide a system output performance warranty, separate from our standard solar panel product

warranty, to customers that have subscribed to our post-installation O&M services. In connection with system
output performance warranties, we agree to pay liquidated damages in the event the system does not perform to
the stated specifications, with certain exclusions. The warranty excludes system output shortfalls attributable to
force majeure events, customer curtailment, irregular weather, and other similar factors. In the event that the
system output falls below the warrantied performance level during the applicable warranty period, and provided
that the shortfall is not caused by a factor that is excluded from the performance warranty, the warranty provides
that we will pay the customer an amount based on the value of the shortfall of energy produced relative to the
applicable warrantied performance level. Such liquidated damages represent a form of variable consideration and
are estimated at contract inception and updated at each reporting period and recognized over time as customers
receive and consume the benefits of the O&M services.

Shipping and Handling Costs

We account for shipping and handling activities related to contracts with customers as costs to fulfill our

promise to transfer goods and, accordingly, records such costs in cost of revenue.

Taxes Collected from Customers and Remitted to Governmental Authorities

We exclude from our measurement of transaction prices all taxes assessed by governmental authorities that

are both (i) imposed on and concurrent with a specific revenue-producing transaction and (ii) collected from
customers. Accordingly, such tax amounts are not included as a component of revenue or cost of revenue.

Stock-Based Compensation

We measure and record compensation expense for all stock-based payment awards based on estimated fair

values. We provide stock-based awards to our employees, executive officers, and directors through various equity
compensation plans including our employee stock option and restricted stock plans. The fair value of restricted
stock units is based on the market price of our common stock on the date of grant. We have not granted stock
options since fiscal 2008.

We estimate forfeitures at the date of grant. Our estimate of forfeitures is based on our historical activity,

which we believe is indicative of expected forfeitures. In subsequent periods if the actual rate of forfeitures
differs from our estimate, the forfeiture rates are required to be revised, as necessary. Changes in the estimated
forfeiture rates can have a significant effect on stock-based compensation expense since the effect of adjusting
the rate is recognized in the period the forfeiture estimate is changed.

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We also grant performance share units to executive officers and certain employees that require us to

estimate expected achievement of performance targets over the performance period. This estimate involves
judgment regarding future expectations of various financial performance measures. If there are changes in our
estimate of the level of financial performance measures expected to be achieved, the related stock-based
compensation expense may be significantly increased or reduced in the period that our estimate changes.

Advertising Costs

Advertising costs are expensed as incurred. Advertising expense totaled approximately $6.9 million,

$6.3 million and $24.9 million, in fiscal 2018, 2017, and 2016, respectively.

Research and Development Expense

Research and development expense consists primarily of salaries and related personnel costs, depreciation

and the cost of solar cell and solar panel materials and services used for the development of products, including
experiments and testing. All research and development costs are expensed as incurred. Research and development
expense is reported net of contributions under the R&D Agreement with Total (See Note 2. Transactions with
Total and Total S.A. for further details) and contracts with governmental agencies because such contracts are
considered collaborative arrangements.

Translation of Foreign Currency

SunPower Corporation and certain of our subsidiaries use their respective local currency as their functional
currency. Accordingly, foreign currency assets and liabilities are translated using exchange rates in effect at the
end of the period. Aggregate exchange gains and losses arising from the translation of foreign assets and
liabilities are included in ‘‘Accumulated other comprehensive loss’’ in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Foreign
subsidiaries that use the U.S. dollar as their functional currency remeasure monetary assets and liabilities using
exchange rates in effect at the end of the period. Exchange gains and losses arising from the remeasurement of
monetary assets and liabilities are included in ‘‘Other, net’’ in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.
Non-monetary assets and liabilities are carried at their historical values.

We include gains or losses from foreign currency transactions in ‘‘Other, net’’ in the Consolidated
Statements of Operations with the other hedging activities described in Note 13. Derivative Financial
Instruments.

Concentration of Credit Risk

We are exposed to credit losses in the event of nonperformance by the counterparties to our financial and

derivative instruments. Financial and derivative instruments that potentially subject us to concentrations of credit
risk are primarily cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash and cash equivalents, investments, accounts
receivable, notes receivable, advances to suppliers, foreign currency option contracts, foreign currency forward
contracts, bond hedge and warrant transactions, and purchased options. Our investment policy requires cash and
cash equivalents, restricted cash and cash equivalents, and investments to be placed with high-quality financial
institutions and to limit the amount of credit risk from any one issuer. Similarly, we enter into foreign currency
derivative contracts and convertible debenture hedge transactions with high-quality financial institutions and limit
the amount of credit exposure to any one counterparty. The foreign currency derivative contracts are limited to a
time period of less than 9 months. We regularly evaluate the credit standing of our counterparty financial
institutions.

We perform ongoing credit evaluations of our customers’ financial condition whenever deemed necessary
and generally we do not require collateral from our leasing customers. We maintain an allowance for doubtful
accounts based on the expected collectability of all accounts receivable, which takes into consideration an
analysis of historical bad debts, specific customer creditworthiness and current economic trends. Qualified
customers under our residential lease program are generally required to have a minimum credit score. We believe
that our concentration of credit risk is limited because of our large number of customers, credit quality of the
customer base, small account balances for most of these customers, and customer geographic diversification. As
of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had no customers that accounted for at least 10% of accounts
receivable. In addition, one customer accounted for approximately 24% and 22% of our ‘‘Contract assets’’
balance as of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively, on the Consolidated Balance Sheets.

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We have entered into agreements with vendors that specify future quantities and pricing of polysilicon to be

supplied for the next three years. The purchase prices required by these polysilicon supply agreements are
significantly higher than current market prices for similar materials. Under certain agreements, we were required
to make prepayments to the vendors over the terms of the arrangements.

Income Taxes

Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for temporary differences between financial statement and
income tax bases of assets and liabilities. Valuation allowances are provided against deferred tax assets when we
cannot conclude that it is more likely than not that some portion or all deferred tax assets will be realized.

As applicable, interest and penalties on tax contingencies are included in ‘‘Benefit from (provision for)
income taxes’’ in the Consolidated Statements of Operations and such amounts were not material for any periods
presented. In addition, foreign exchange gains (losses) may result from estimated tax liabilities, which are
expected to be settled in currencies other than the U.S. dollar.

The Tax Act and Jobs Act of 2017 (the ‘‘Tax Act’’) also included a provision to tax Global Intangible

Low-Taxed Income (‘‘GILTI’’), of foreign subsidiaries in excess of a deemed return on their tangible assets.
Pursuant to the SEC guidance on accounting for the Tax Act, corporations are allowed to make an accounting
policy election to either (i) recognize the tax impact of GILTI as a period cost (the ‘‘period cost method’’), or
(ii) account for GILTI in the corporation’s measurement of deferred taxes (the ‘‘deferred method’’). In the fourth
quarter of the fiscal year 2018, we elected to recognize the tax impact of GILTI as a period cost.

Investments in Equity Interests

Investments in entities in which we can exercise significant influence, but do not own a majority equity

interest or otherwise control, are accounted for under the equity method. We record our share of the results of
these entities as ‘‘Equity in earnings (losses) of unconsolidated investees’’ on the Consolidated Statements of
Operations. We monitor our investments for other-than-temporary impairment by considering factors such as
current economic and market conditions and the operating performance of the entities and records reductions in
carrying values when necessary. The fair value of privately-held investments is estimated using the best available
information as of the valuation date, including current earnings trends, undiscounted cash flows, and other
company specific information, including recent financing rounds (see Note 6. Balance Sheet Components and
Note 8. Fair Value Measurements).

Noncontrolling Interests

Noncontrolling interests represents the portion of net assets in consolidated subsidiaries that are not

attributable, directly or indirectly, to us. Beginning in fiscal 2013, we have entered into facilities with third-party
investors under which the investors are determined to hold noncontrolling interests in entities fully consolidated
by us. The net assets of the shared entities are attributed to the controlling and noncontrolling interests based on
the terms of the governing contractual arrangements. We further determined the hypothetical liquidation at book
value method (‘‘HLBV Method’’) to be the appropriate method for attributing net assets to the controlling and
noncontrolling interests as this method most closely mirrors the economics of the governing contractual
arrangements. Under the HLBV Method, we allocate recorded income (loss) to each investor based on the
change, during the reporting period, of the amount of net assets each investor is entitled to under the governing
contractual arrangements in a liquidation scenario.

Business Combinations

We record all acquired assets and assumed liabilities, including goodwill, other intangible assets, and
in-process research and development, at fair value. The initial recording of goodwill, other identifiable intangible
assets, and in-process research and development, requires certain estimates and assumptions concerning the
determination of the fair values and useful lives. The judgments made in the context of the purchase price
allocation can materially impact our future results of operations. Accordingly, for significant acquisitions, we
obtain assistance from third-party valuation specialists. The valuations calculated from estimates are based on
information available at the acquisition date (see Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestiture and Note 5.
Other Intangible Assets). We charge acquisition related costs that are not part of the consideration to general and
administrative expense as they are incurred. These costs typically include transaction and integration costs, such
as legal, accounting, and other professional fees.

113

We initially record receipts of net assets or equity interests between entities under common control at their

carrying amounts in the accounts of the transferring entity. Financial statements and financial information
presented for prior years are retrospectively adjusted to effect the transfer as of the first date for which the
entities were under common control. If the carrying amounts of the assets and liabilities transferred differ from
the historical cost of the parent of the entities under common control, then amounts recognized in our financial
statements reflect the transferred assets and liabilities at the historical cost of the parent of the entities under
common control. Financial statements and financial information presented for prior years are also retrospectively
adjusted to furnish comparative information as though the assets and liabilities had been transferred at that date.

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

In February 2018, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (‘‘FASB’’) issued Accounting Standards

Update (‘‘ASU’’) No. 2018-02, Income Statement - Reporting Comprehensive Income (Topic 220) -
Reclassification of Certain Tax Effects from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income, to permit companies to
reclassify disproportionate tax effects in accumulated other comprehensive income (‘‘AOCI’’) caused by the Tax
Act to retained earnings. Companies may adopt the new guidance using one of two transition methods:
retrospective to each period in which the income tax effects of the Tax Act related to items remaining in AOCI
are recognized, or at the beginning of the period of adoption. We adopted this ASU in the fourth quarter of fiscal
2018. The adoption of this ASU did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements and
disclosures.

In August 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-12, Derivatives and Hedging (Topic 815) to target

improvements to accounting for hedging activities. The improvements include (i) alignment of risk management
activities and financial reporting, and (ii) other simplifications in the application of hedge accounting guidance.
The new guidance is effective for us no later than the first quarter of fiscal 2019 and requires a modified
retrospective approach to adoption. We elected early adoption of this ASU in the first quarter of fiscal 2018. The
adoption of this ASU did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements and disclosures.

In May 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-09, Compensation - Stock Compensation (Topic 718) to
clarify which changes to the terms or conditions of a share-based payment award require an entity to apply
modification accounting. We adopted this ASU in the first quarter of fiscal 2018. The adoption of this ASU did
not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements and disclosures.

In March 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-07, Compensation - Retirement Benefits (Topic 715) to

provide final guidance on the presentation of net periodic pension and postretirement benefit cost. The
amendment requires the bifurcation of net benefit cost. The service cost component will be presented with other
employee compensation costs in operating income or capitalized in assets. The other components will be
recorded separately outside of operations and will not be eligible for capitalization. The guidance is required to
be applied on a retrospective basis for the presentation of the service cost component and the other components
of net benefit cost and on a prospective basis for the capitalization of only the service cost component of net
benefit cost. We adopted this ASU in the first quarter of fiscal 2018. The adoption of this ASU did not have a
material impact on our consolidated financial statements and disclosures.

In February 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-05, Other Income - Gains and Losses from the Derecognition

of Nonfinancial Assets (Subtopic 610-20) to clarify the scope and application of the sale or transfer of
nonfinancial assets to noncustomers, including partial sales and also to define what constitutes an ‘‘in substance
nonfinancial asset’’ which can include financial assets. The new guidance eliminates several accounting
differences between transactions involving assets and transactions involving businesses. Further, the guidance
aligns the accounting for derecognition of a nonfinancial asset with that of a business. We adopted this ASU in
the first quarter of fiscal 2018. The adoption of this ASU did not have a material impact on our consolidated
financial statements and disclosures.

In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-01, Business Combinations (Topic 805) to clarify the

definition of a business to assist entities with evaluating whether transactions should be accounted for as
acquisitions (or disposals) of assets or businesses. The new guidance was effective for us no later than the first
quarter of fiscal 2018 and required a prospective approach to adoption. We adopted this ASU in the first quarter
of fiscal 2018. The adoption of this ASU did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements
and disclosures.

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In January 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-01, Financial Instruments - Overall (Subtopic 825-10)

(‘‘ASU 2016-01’’) to require equity investments to be measured at fair value with changes in the fair value
recognized through net income (other than those accounted for under the equity method of accounting or those
that result in consolidation of the investee). In February 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-03, Technical
Corrections and Improvements to Financial Instruments - Overall (Subtopic 825-10), which provided
clarifications to ASU 2016-01. We adopted this ASU in the first quarter of fiscal 2018 on a prospective basis for
our equity investments without readily determinable fair value and elected the cost less impairment (if any)
method, adjusted for observable price changes in orderly transactions for an identical or similar investment of the
same issuer (the ‘‘measurement alternative method’’). This election is reassessed on a required recurring basis.
The adoption of this ASU did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements and
disclosures.

In May 2014, the FASB issued ASC 606. Under the new standard, revenue is recognized when a customer
obtains control of promised goods or services in an amount that reflects the consideration the entity expects to
receive in exchange for those goods or services. In addition, the standard requires disclosure of the nature,
amount, timing, and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from contracts with customers. We adopted
ASC 606 on January 1, 2018, using the full retrospective method, which required us to restate each prior period
presented. We implemented key system functionality and internal controls to enable the preparation of financial
information upon adoption.

The most significant impact of ASC 606 relates to the sales of solar power systems that include the sale or

lease of related real estate previously accounted for under the guidance for real estate sales ASC 360-20,
Property, Plant, and Equipment. ASC 360-20 required us to evaluate whether such arrangements had any forms
of continuing involvement that may have affected the revenue or profit recognition of the transactions, including
arrangements with prohibited forms of continuing involvement requiring us to reduce the potential profit on a
project sale by our maximum exposure to loss. The adoption of ASC 606, which supersedes the real estate sales
guidance under ASC 360-20, generally results in the earlier recognition of revenue and profit than our historical
practice under ASC 360-20. For sales arrangements in which we obtain or retain an interest in the project sold to
the customer, we recognize all the revenue for the consideration received, including the fair value of the
noncontrolling interests obtained or retained, and defers any profits associated with the interest retained through
‘‘Equity in earnings (losses) of unconsolidated investees.’’ We then recognize any deferred profit on a
straight-line basis over the useful life of the underlying system, with any remaining amount recognized upon the
sale of the noncontrolling interest to a third party. Following the adoption of ASC 606, the revenue recognition
for our other sales arrangements, including the sales of components, sales and construction of solar systems, and
O&M services, remained materially consistent. The revenue recognition for residential leasing and sale-leaseback
arrangements remained consistent as they follow other U.S. GAAP guidance.

As part of our adoption of ASC 606 in the first quarter of fiscal 2018, we elected to apply the following

practical expedients:

• We have not restated contracts that begin and are completed within the same annual reporting period;
•

For completed contracts that have variable consideration, we used the transaction price at the date upon
which the contract was completed rather than estimating variable consideration amounts in the
comparative reporting periods;

• We have excluded disclosures of transaction prices allocated to remaining performance obligations and
when we expect to recognize such revenue for all periods prior to the date of initial application;
• We have not retrospectively restated our contracts to account for those modifications that were entered

into before January 3, 2016, the earliest reporting period impacted by ASC 606;

• We have expensed costs as incurred for costs to obtain a contract when the amortization period would
have been one year or less. These costs are included in selling, general, and administrative expenses;
and

• We have not assessed a contract asset or contract liability for a significant financing component if the
period between the customer’s payment and our transfer of goods or services is one year or less.

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Refer to Impact to Previously Reported Consolidated Financial Statements below for the impact of adoption

of the standard on the consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2017 and January 1, 2017, and for
the fiscal years ended December 31, 2017 and January 1, 2017.

Impact to Previously Reported Consolidated Financial Statements

Adoption of ASC 606 impacted our previously reported results as follows:

(In thousands)

Accounts receivable, net. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Costs and estimated earnings in excess of billings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Prepaid expenses and other current assets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Property, plant and equipment, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Solar power systems leased and to be leased, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Long-term financing receivables, net. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other long-term assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accrued liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Billings in excess of costs and estimated earnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities, current portion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Customer advances, current portion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Customer advances, net of current portion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities, net of current portion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other long-term liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accumulated deficit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

December 31, 2017
Adoption of
ASC 606

As
Adjusted(1)

As Reported

$

215,479
18,203
—
152,444
1,148,042
428,149
338,877
80,146
267,760
8,708
—
54,999
69,062
—
954,646
(2,115,188)

$ (10,513)
(18,203)
35,074
(6,235)
(197)
(58,931)
(8,205)
466,552
(35,989)
(8,708)
101,723
(54,999)
(69,062)
133,390
(112,304)
445,291

$

204,966
—
35,074
146,209
1,147,845
369,218
330,672
546,698
231,771
—
101,723
—
—
133,390
842,342
(1,669,897)

(1) Under the new segmentation, we reflected employee departments’ changes between segments, including those that moved from
corporate functions into the business units, and the associated impact on headcount related expenses to the comparative periods
presented. This resulted in a shift of such expenses between Cost of Revenue and Operating Expenses in our reported consolidated
financial statements that are not reflected in the table above. See ‘‘Note 18. Segment and Geographical Information’’.

(In thousands except per share)
Revenue:
Solar power systems, components, and other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Residential leasing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cost of revenue:

Solar power systems, components, and other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Residential leasing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gross profit (loss) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interest expense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other, net. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other expense, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loss before income taxes and equity in earnings of unconsolidated

investees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net loss attributable to stockholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2017
Adoption of
ASC 606

As Adjusted(1)

As Reported

$ 1,667,376
204,437

$(72,435)
(5,331)

$ 1,594,941
199,106

1,749,377
137,707
(15,271)
(89,754)
(10,941)
(98,595)

(1,117,064)
20,211
(1,092,910)
(851,163)

(67,902)
(3,415)
(6,449)
(534)
(76,704)
(77,238)

(83,686)
5,727
(77,958)
(77,958)

1,681,475
134,292
(21,720)
(90,288)
(87,645)
(175,833)

(1,200,750)
25,938
(1,170,868)
(929,121)

Basic and diluted net loss per share attributable to stockholders. . . . . .

$

(6.11)

$

(0.56)

$

(6.67)

(1) Under the new segmentation, we reflected employee departments’ changes between segments, including those that moved from
corporate functions into the business units, and the associated impact on headcount related expenses to the comparative periods
presented. This resulted in a shift of such expenses between Cost of Revenue and Operating Expenses in our reported consolidated
financial statements that are not reflected in the table above. See ‘‘Note 18. Segment and Geographical Information’’.

116

(In thousands except per share)
Revenue:

Fiscal Year Ended January 1, 2017
Adoption of
ASC 606

As Adjusted(1)

As Reported

Solar power systems, components, and other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Residential leasing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cost of revenue: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Solar power systems, components, and other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Residential leasing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gross profit (loss) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gain on sale and impairment of residential lease assets. . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interest expense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other, net. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other expense, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loss before income taxes and equity in earnings of unconsolidated

investees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net loss attributable to stockholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$2,294,608
264,954

$ 32,813
(39,738)

$2,327,421
225,216

2,173,364
196,232
189,966
—
(60,735)
(9,039)
(102,181)

(564,595)
28,070
(543,844)
(471,064)

(5,065)
(29,370)
27,510
(7,263)
(538)
2,081
1,543

36,203
(13,775)
22,429
22,429

2,168,299
166,862
217,476
(7,263)
(61,273)
(6,958)
(100,638)

(528,392)
14,295
(521,415)
(448,635)

Basic and diluted net loss per share attributable to stockholders. . . . . .

$

(3.41)

$

0.16

$

(3.25)

(1) Under the new segmentation, we reflected employee departments’ changes between segments, including those that moved from
corporate functions into the business units, and the associated impact on headcount related expenses to the comparative periods
presented. This resulted in a shift of such expenses between Cost of Revenue and Operating Expenses in our reported consolidated
financial statements that are not reflected in the table above. See ‘‘Note 18. Segment and Geographical Information’’.

(In thousands)

Net loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating

activities, net of effect of acquisitions: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Depreciation and amortization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Impairment of equity method investment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net of effect of

acquisitions: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accounts receivable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Costs and estimated earnings in excess of billings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Project assets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Prepaid expenses and other assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Long-term financing receivables, net. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accounts payable and other accrued liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Billings in excess of costs and estimated earnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Customer advances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net cash used in operating activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net decrease in cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted

cash equivalents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents,
beginning of period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents,
end of period. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

117

Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2017
Adoption of
ASC 606

As Adjusted

As Reported

$(1,092,910)

$ (77,958)

$(1,170,868)

188,698
8,607
(20,211)

(3,415)
80,957
(5,727)

185,283
89,564
(25,938)

(458)
14,577
—
19,153
158,868
(123,842)
(192,096)
(68,432)
113,626
—
(267,412)

30,125

514,212

544,337

(733)
(14,577)
10,660
(16,760)
(48,338)
168
(24,253)
68,432
(113,626)
145,171
—

—

—

—

(1,191)
—
10,660
2,393
110,530
(123,674)
(216,349)
—
—
145,171
(267,412)

30,125

514,212

544,337

(In thousands)

Net loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating

activities, net of effect of acquisitions:
Equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Depreciation and amortization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loss on sale and impairment of residential lease assets. . . . . . . . . . .

Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net of effect of

acquisitions:
Costs and estimated earnings in excess of billings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Project assets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Prepaid expenses and other assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Long-term financing receivables, net. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accounts payable and other accrued liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Billings in excess of costs and estimated earnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Customer advances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net cash used in operating activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net decrease in cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted

cash equivalents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents,
beginning of period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents,
end of period. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Fiscal Year Ended January 1, 2017
Adoption of
ASC 606

As Adjusted

As Reported

$ (543,844)

$ 22,429

$ (521,415)

(28,070)
174,209
—

13,775
(3,672)
(7,263)

(14,295)
170,537
(7,263)

6,198
—
33,248
48,758
(172,542)
(12,146)
(38,204)
(16,969)
—
(312,283)

(506,553)

1,020,764

514,212

(6,198)
62,161
(36,849)
(45,571)
270
(6,634)
38,204
16,969
(47,622)
—

—

—

—

—
62,161
(3,601)
3,187
(172,272)
(18,780)
—
—
(47,622)
(312,283)

(506,553)

1,020,764

514,212

Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted

In October 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-17, Consolidation (Topic 810): Targeted Improvements to

Related Party Guidance for Variable Interest Entities, which broadens the scope of the private company
alternative to include all common control arrangements that meet specific criteria (not just leasing arrangements)
and also eliminates the requirement that entities consider indirect interests held through related parties under
common control in their entirety when assessing whether a decision-making fee is a variable interest. This ASU
is effective for us no later than the first quarter of 2020 on a retrospective basis with a cumulative-effect
adjustment to retained earnings at the beginning of the earliest period presented. We are evaluating the potential
impact of this ASU on our consolidated financial statements and disclosures.

In October 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-16, Derivatives and Hedging (Topic 815): Inclusion of the

Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) Overnight Index Swap (OIS) Rate as a Benchmark Interest Rate for
Hedge Accounting Purposes which permits the use of the Overnight Index Swap Rate based on the Secured
Overnight Financing Rate as a fifth U.S. benchmark interest rate for purposes of hedge accounting. The new
guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018 and interim periods within those fiscal
years and should be applied prospectively for qualifying new or redesignated hedging relationships entered into
after January 1, 2019. We are currently evaluating the impact of the new guidance on our consolidated financial
statements.

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-15, Intangibles — Goodwill and Other — Internal-Use
Software (Subtopic 350-40) requiring a customer in a cloud computing arrangement that is a service contract to
follow the internal-use software guidance in ASC 350-40 to determine which implementation costs to capitalize
as assets. This ASU is effective for us no later than the first quarter of 2020 with early adoption permitted. This
ASU can be applied either retrospectively or prospectively to all implementation costs incurred after the date of
adoption. We are evaluating the potential impact of this standard on our consolidated financial statements and
disclosures.

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In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-14, Compensation - Retirement Benefits - Defined Benefit
Plans - General (Subtopic 715-20) to add, remove, and clarify disclosure requirements related to defined benefit
pension and other postretirement plans. This ASU is effective for us no later than the first quarter of 2020 with
early adoption permitted. We are evaluating the potential impact of this standard on our consolidated financial
statements and disclosures.

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-13, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820) which changes the

fair value measurement disclosure requirements of ASC 820. This ASU is effective for us no later than the first
quarter of 2020 with early adoption permitted. We are evaluating the potential impact of this standard on our
consolidated financial statements and disclosures.

In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-04, Intangibles - Goodwill and Other (Topic 350) to
simplify the subsequent measurement of goodwill by eliminating Step 2 of the goodwill impairment test, which
requires a hypothetical purchase price allocation to measure goodwill impairment. Goodwill impairment loss is
now measured at the amount by which a reporting unit’s carrying amount exceeds its fair value, not to exceed
the carrying amount of goodwill. This ASU is effective for us no later than the first quarter of fiscal 2020. Early
adoption is permitted beginning in the first quarter of fiscal 2017. The adoption of this new ASU will not impact
our consolidated financial statements and related disclosure, as we no longer have goodwill.

In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842), as amended (‘‘ASC 842’’) to
replace existing lease guidance and require all lessees to recognize a right-of-use asset and a liability for the
obligation to make payments for all leases (except for short-term leases) on their balance sheet. All leases in
scope will be classified as either operating or financing. Operating and financing leases will require the
recognition of an asset and liability to be measured at the present value of the lease payments. ASC 842 also
makes a distinction between operating and financing leases for purposes of reporting expenses on the income
statement. In July 2018, the FASB issued several ASUs to clarify and improve certain aspects of the new lease
standard including, among many other things, the rate implicit in the lease, lessee reassessment of lease
classification, variable payments that depend on an index or rate, methods of transition including an optional
transition method to continue recognizing and disclosing leases entered into prior to the adoption date under
current GAAP (‘‘ASC 840’’). In December 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-20, Leases (Topic 842)
Narrow-Scope Improvements for Lessors, related to sales taxes and other similar taxes collected from lessees,
certain lessor costs paid by lessees to third parties, and related to recognition of variable payments for contracts.

This ASU will be effective for us in the first quarter of 2019 and we expect to adopt using the optional
transition method and all available practical expedients. We continue to make progress with our project plan,
which includes evaluating contracts, developing policies, and implementing new controls and enhancing existing
controls that will be necessary under the new standard.

Upon adoption, we expect the following changes to our accounting policies:

•

•

•

Solar leases will no longer meet the criteria for lease accounting as our contracts do not allow the
customer to direct the use of the underlying solar system. Instead, we will account for these
arrangements as service contract pursuant to ASC Topic 606 and be recognized ratably based on
contractual lease cash flows over the lease term.

Real estate and other operating lease arrangements will be monitored and accounted pursuant to ASC
842.

Arrangements that involve the lease-back of solar systems sold to a financier will continue to be
accounted for as a failed sale and result in the recording of a financing liability pursuant to ASC 842.

We are in the final stages of completing our review of historical lease contracts to quantify the expected

impact of adoption on our consolidated financial statements. Based on our current evaluation of our entire
population of contracts impacted by ASC 842 upon adoption, we expect to record on our Consolidated Balance
Sheets, right-of-use assets and lease liabilities of approximately $75.0 million to $95.0 million in relation to
sale-leaseback arrangements and real-estate lease commitments. In addition, we expect to record an adjustment to
our accumulated deficit, net of taxes, of approximately $5.0 million to $15.0 million from the recognition of
previously deferred profit under sale-lease back arrangements.

119

We continue to assess the potential impacts of the new standard, including the areas described above, and

anticipate that this standard will have a material impact on our Consolidated Balance Sheets and disclosures.
However, we do not know or cannot reasonably estimate quantitative information, beyond that discussed above,
related to the impact of the new standard on the financial statements at this time.

Note 2. TRANSACTIONS WITH TOTAL AND TOTAL S.A.

In June 2011, Total completed a cash tender offer to acquire 60% of our then outstanding shares of common
stock at a price of $23.25 per share, for a total cost of approximately $1.4 billion. In December 2011, we entered
into a Private Placement Agreement with Total (the ‘‘Private Placement Agreement’’), under which Total
purchased, and we issued and sold, 18.6 million shares of our common stock for a purchase price of $8.80 per
share, thereby increasing Total’s ownership to approximately 66% of our outstanding common stock as of that
date. As of December 30, 2018, through the increase of our total outstanding common stock due to the exercise
of warrants and issuance of restricted and performance stock units, Total’s ownership of our outstanding common
stock was approximately 56%.

Supply Agreements

In November 2016, we and Total entered into a four-year, up to 200 megawatt (‘‘MW’’) supply agreement
to support the solarization of certain Total facilities. The agreement covers the supply of 150 MW of Maxeon 2
(formally known as E-Series) panels with an option to purchase up to another 50 MW of P-Series solar panels.
In March 2017, we received a prepayment totaling $88.5 million. The prepayment is secured by certain of our
assets located in the United States and in Mexico.

We recognize revenue for the solar panels supplied under this arrangement consistent with our revenue
recognition policy for solar power components at a point in time when control of such products transfers to the
customer, which generally occurs upon shipment or delivery depending on the terms of the contracts. In the
second quarter of fiscal 2017, we started to supply Total with solar panels under the supply agreement and as of
December 30, 2018, we had $18.4 million of ‘‘Contract liabilities, current portion’’ and $45.3 million of
‘‘Contract liabilities, net of current portion’’ on our Consolidated Balance Sheets related to the aforementioned
supply agreement (see Note 10. Commitments and Contingencies’’).

In March 2018, we and Total, each through certain affiliates, entered into an agreement whereby we agreed

to sell 3.42 MW of photovoltaic (‘‘PV’’) modules to Total for a development project in Chile. This agreement
provided for payment from Total in the amount of approximately $1.3 million, 10% of which was paid upon
execution of the agreement.

Amended and Restated Credit Support Agreement

In June 2016, we and Total S.A. entered into an Amended and Restated Credit Support Agreement (the
‘‘Credit Support Agreement’’), which amended and restated the Credit Support Agreement dated April 28, 2011,
by and between us and Total S.A., as amended. Under the Credit Support Agreement, Total S.A. agreed to enter
into one or more guarantee agreements (each a ‘‘Guaranty’’) with banks providing letter of credit facilities to us.
At any time until December 31, 2018, Total S.A. will, at our request, guarantee the payment to the applicable
issuing bank of our obligation to reimburse a draw on a letter of credit and pay interest thereon in accordance
with the letter of credit facility between such bank and us. Such letters of credit must be issued no later than
December 31, 2018 and expire no later than March 31, 2020. Total S.A. is required to issue and enter into a
Guaranty requested by us, subject to certain terms and conditions. In addition, Total will not be required to enter
into the Guaranty if, after giving effect to our request for a Guaranty, the sum of (a) the aggregate amount
available to be drawn under all guaranteed letter of credit facilities, (b) the amount of letters of credit available
to be issued under any guaranteed facility, and (c) the aggregate amount of draws (including accrued but unpaid
interest) on any letters of credit issued under any guaranteed facility that have not yet been reimbursed by us,
would exceed $500.0 million in the aggregate. Such maximum amounts of credit support available to us can be
reduced upon the occurrence of specified events.

In consideration for the commitments of Total S.A. pursuant to the Credit Support Agreement, we are

required to pay Total S.A. a guaranty fee for each letter of credit that is the subject of a Guaranty under the
Credit Support Agreement and was outstanding for all or part of the preceding calendar quarter. The Credit
Support Agreement will terminate following December 31, 2018, after the later of the satisfaction of all
obligations thereunder and the termination or expiration of each Guaranty provided thereunder.

120

In addition to the Credit Support Agreement, we and Total S.A. entered into the Letter Agreement in May

2017 to facilitate the issuance by Total S.A. of one or more guaranties of our payment obligations of up to
$100.0 million (the ‘‘Support Amount’’) under the Revolver with Credit Agricole, as ‘‘administrative agent,’’ and
the other lenders party thereto; See ‘‘Note 12. Debt and Credit Sources’’ for additional information on the
Revolver with Credit Agricole. In consideration for the commitments of Total S.A. pursuant to the Letter
Agreement, we are required to pay a guarantor commitment fee of 0.50% per annum for the unutilized Support
Amount and a guaranty fee of 2.35% per annum of the Guaranty outstanding. The maturity date of the Letter
Agreement is August 26, 2019.

Affiliation Agreement

We and Total have entered into an Affiliation Agreement that governs the relationship between Total and us

(the ‘‘Affiliation Agreement’’). Until the expiration of a standstill period specified in the Affiliation Agreement
(the ‘‘Standstill Period’’), and subject to certain exceptions, Total, Total S.A., and any of their respective affiliates
and certain other related parties (collectively, the ‘‘Total Group’’) may not effect, seek, or enter into discussions
with any third party regarding any transaction that would result in the Total Group beneficially owning our
shares in excess of certain thresholds, or request us or our independent directors, officers or employees, to amend
or waive any of the standstill restrictions applicable to the Total Group. The Standstill Period ends when Total
holds less than 15% ownership of us.

The Affiliation Agreement imposes certain limitations on the Total Group’s ability to seek to effect a tender

offer or merger to acquire 100% of the outstanding voting power of us and imposes certain limitations on the
Total Group’s ability to transfer 40% or more of the outstanding shares or voting power of us to a single person
or group that is not a direct or indirect subsidiary of Total S.A. During the Standstill Period, no member of the
Total Group may, among other things, solicit proxies or become a participant in an election contest relating to the
election of directors to our Board of Directors.

The Affiliation Agreement provides Total with the right to maintain its percentage ownership in connection

with any new securities issued by us, and Total may also purchase shares on the open market or in private
transactions with disinterested stockholders, subject in each case to certain restrictions.

The Affiliation Agreement also imposes certain restrictions with respect to the ability of us and our board of

directors to take certain actions, including specifying certain actions that require approval by the directors other
than the directors appointed by Total and other actions that require stockholder approval by Total.

Research & Collaboration Agreement

We and Total have entered into a Research & Collaboration Agreement (the ‘‘R&D Agreement’’) that
establishes a framework under which the parties engage in long-term research and development collaboration
(‘‘R&D Collaboration’’). The R&D Collaboration encompasses a number of different projects, with a focus on
advancing our technology position in the crystalline silicon domain, as well as ensuring our industrial
competitiveness. The R&D Agreement enables a joint committee to identify, plan and manage the R&D
Collaboration.

Upfront Warrant

In February 2012, we issued a warrant (the ‘‘Upfront Warrant’’) to Total S.A. to purchase 9,531,677 shares

of our common stock with an exercise price of $7.8685, subject to adjustment for customary anti-dilution and
other events. The Upfront Warrant, which is governed by the Private Placement Agreement and a Compensation
and Funding Agreement, dated February 28, 2012, as amended, is exercisable at any time for seven years after
its issuance, provided that, so long as at least $25.0 million in aggregate of our convertible debt remains
outstanding, such exercise will not cause any ‘‘person,’’ including Total S.A., to, directly or indirectly, including
through one or more wholly-owned subsidiaries, become the ‘‘beneficial owner’’ (as such terms are defined in
Rule 13d-3 and Rule 13d-5 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended) (the ‘‘Exchange Act’’), of
more than 74.99% of the voting power of our common stock at such time, a circumstance which would trigger
the repurchase or conversion of our existing convertible debt.

0.75% Debentures Due 2018

In May 2013, we issued $300.0 million in principal amount of the 0.75% debentures due 2018. An
aggregate principal amount of $200.0 million of the 0.75% debentures due 2018 were acquired by Total. The

121

0.75% debentures due 2018 were convertible into shares of our common stock at any time based on an initial
conversion price equal to $24.95 per share, which provided Total the right to acquire up to 8,017,420 shares of
our common stock. The applicable conversion rate could adjust in certain circumstances, including a fundamental
change, as described in the indenture governing the 0.75% debentures due 2018. On June 1, 2018, we redeemed
the 0.75% debentures due 2018 at maturity in full for cash with proceeds from the Term Credit Agreement. On
June 19, 2018, we completed the sale of our equity interest in the 8point3 Group, the proceeds of which were
used to repay the loan under the Term Credit Agreement.

0.875% Debentures Due 2021

In June 2014, we issued $400.0 million in principal amount of our 0.875% senior convertible debentures
due 2021 (the ‘‘0.875% debentures due 2021’’). An aggregate principal amount of $250.0 million of the 0.875%
debentures due 2021 were acquired by Total. The 0.875% debentures due 2021 are convertible into shares of our
common stock at any time based on an initial conversion price equal to $48.76 per share, which provides Total
the right to acquire up to 5,126,775 shares of our common stock. The applicable conversion rate may adjust in
certain circumstances, including a fundamental change, as described in the indenture governing the 0.875%
debentures due 2021.

4.00% Debentures Due 2023

In December 2015, we issued $425.0 million in principal amount of our 4.00% senior convertible

debentures due 2023 (the ‘‘4.00% debentures due 2023’’). An aggregate principal amount of $100.0 million of
the 4.00% debentures due 2023 were acquired by Total. The 4.00% debentures due 2023 are convertible into
shares of our common stock at any time based on an initial conversion price equal to $30.53 per share, which
provides Total the right to acquire up to 3,275,680 shares of our common stock. The applicable conversion rate
may adjust in certain circumstances, including a fundamental change, as described in the indenture governing the
4.00% debentures due 2023.

Joint Solar Projects with Total and its Affiliates

We enter into various EPC and O&M agreements relating to solar projects, including EPC and O&M
services agreements relating to projects owned or partially owned by Total and its affiliates. As of December 30,
2018, we had $0.02 million of ‘‘Contract assets’’ and $3.8 million of ‘‘Accounts receivable, net’’ on our
Consolidated Balance Sheets related to projects in which Total and its affiliates have a direct or indirect material
interest.

In connection with a co-development solar project between us, Total and an independent third party, we sold

25% of our ownership interests in the co-development solar project to Total. The amount received from Total
was immaterial for fiscal 2018. We sold an additional 25% of our ownership interest to Total during the fourth
quarter of 2018 and will supply PV in late 2019 to the solar project. However, recent amendments to the
feed-in-tariff rules in Japan have had a significant impact on the co-development solar project’s ability to secure
financing and we are currently exploring alternatives to monetize our investment in the co-development solar
project.

In connection with a co-development solar project between us and Total, Total paid $0.3 million to us for

development fees for fiscal 2018.

In connection with a co-development project between us and Total, Total paid $0.5 million to us in

exchange for our ownership interest in the co-development project for fiscal 2017.

During the fourth quarter of 2017, we sold our remaining noncontrolling interests in a co-development
project entity to Total, which was accounted for as equity method investment, resulting in a gain of $5.3 million
in ‘‘Other income (expense), net’’ of the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

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Related-Party Transactions with Total and its Affiliates:

The following related party balances and amounts are associated with transactions entered into with Total and its
Affiliates:

(In thousands)

As of
December 30, 2018 December 31, 2017

Accounts receivable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract assets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities, current portion1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities, net of current portion1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$ 3,823
$
18
$18,408
$45,258

$ 2,366
$
154
$12,744
$68,880

1

Refer to Note 10. Commitments and Contingencies - Advances from Customers.

(In thousands)

Revenue:

Fiscal Year Ended
2017

2016

2018

EPC, O&M, and components revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$28,094

$42,968

$64,719

Cost of revenue:

EPC, O&M, and components cost of revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$16,382

$30,400

$60,799

Research and development expense:

Offsetting contributions received under the R&D Agreement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$

(93) $ (138) $ (557)

Interest expense:

Guarantee fees incurred under the Credit Support Agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interest expense incurred on the 0.75% debentures due 2018. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interest expense incurred on the 0.875% debentures due 2021. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interest expense incurred on the 4.00% debentures due 2023. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$ 5,312
$
547
$ 2,188
$ 4,000

$ 6,325
$ 1,500
$ 2,188
$ 4,000

$ 7,130
$ 1,500
$ 2,188
$ 4,000

Note 3. REVENUE FROM CONTRACTS WITH CUSTOMERS

Disaggregation of Revenue

The following tables represent a disaggregation of revenue from contracts with customers for the fiscal year

2018, 2017 and 2016 along with the reportable segment for each category:

(In thousands)
Category

Module and

SunPower Technologies
2017

2016

2018

Fiscal Year
SunPower Energy Services
2017

2016

2018

Total Revenue
2017

2016

2018

component sales . .

$532,590

$408,303

$ 313,652

$ 477,652

$428,799

$476,483

$1,010,242

$ 837,102

$ 790,135

Solar power systems
sales and EPC
services . . . . . . .

Operations and

maintenance . . . .
Leasing1 . . . . . . . . .

147,756

470,851

1,238,494

213,345

211,850

207,813

361,101

682,701

1,446,307

—
125

—
4,687

—
1,491

49,089
305,528

43,643
225,914

36,208
278,496

49,089
305,653

43,643
230,601

36,208
279,987

Revenue . . . . . . . . .

$680,471

$883,841

$1,553,637

$1,045,614

$910,206

$999,000

$1,726,085

$1,794,047

$2,552,637

1

Leasing revenue is accounted for in accordance with the lease accounting guidance.

We recognize revenue for sales of modules and components at the point that control transfers to the
customer, which typically occurs upon shipment or delivery to the customer, depending on the terms of the
contract. For EPC revenue and solar power systems sales, we commence recognizing revenue when control of
the underlying system transfers to the customer and continue recognizing revenue over time as work is
performed based on the ratio of costs incurred to date to the total estimated costs at completion of the
performance obligations.

Judgment is required to evaluate assumptions including the amount of net contract revenues and the total
estimated costs to determine our progress towards contract completion and to calculate the corresponding amount

123

of revenue to recognize. If estimated total costs on any contract are greater than the net contract revenues, we
recognize the entire estimated loss in the period the loss becomes known. For contracts with post-installation
systems monitoring and maintenance, we recognize revenue related to systems monitoring and maintenance over
the non-cancellable contract term on a straight-line basis.

Changes in estimates for sales of systems and EPC services occur for a variety of reasons, including but not

limited to (i) construction plan accelerations or delays, (ii) product cost forecast changes, (iii) change orders, or
(iv) changes in other information used to estimate costs. Changes in estimates may have a material effect on our
Consolidated Statements of Operations. The table below outlines the impact on revenue of net changes in
estimated transaction prices and input costs for systems related sales contracts (both increases and decreases) for
the years ended December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017 as well as the number of projects that comprise
such changes. For purposes of the following table, only projects with changes in estimates that have an impact
on revenue and or cost of at least $1.0 million during the periods were presented. Also included in the table is
the net change in estimate as a percentage of the aggregate revenue for such projects.

(In thousands, except number of projects)

December 30,
2018

Fiscal Year Ended
December 31,
2017

January 1,
2017

Increase (decrease) in revenue from net changes in transaction

prices. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$ —

Increase (decrease) in revenue from net changes in input cost

estimates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(1,045)

Net increase (decrease) in revenue from net changes in estimates . . .

$(1,045)

Number of projects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net change in estimate as a percentage of aggregate revenue for

1

$—

—

$—

—

associated projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

—%

—%

$ (743)

5,768

$5,025

6

—%

For the years ended December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, there were no material adjustments to
revenue as a result of changes in transaction prices or input cost estimates. For the year ended January 1, 2017,
revenue increased by $5.0 million from net changes in transaction prices and input cost estimates.

Contract Assets and Liabilities

Contract assets consist of (i) retainage which represents the earned, but unbilled, portion of a construction
and development project for which payment is deferred by the customer until certain contractual milestones are
met; and (ii) unbilled receivables which represent revenue that has been recognized in advance of billing the
customer, which is common for long-term construction contracts. Contract liabilities consist of deferred revenue
and customer advances, which represent consideration received from a customer prior to transferring control of
goods or services to the customer under the terms of a sales contract. Contract liabilities exclude deferred
revenue related to our residential lease program which are accounted for under the lease accounting guidance.
Refer to ‘‘Note 6. Balance Sheet Components’’ for further details.

During the year ended December 30, 2018, the increase in contract assets of $43.5 million was primarily
driven by unbilled receivables for commercial projects where certain milestones had not yet been reached, but
the criteria to recognize revenue had been met. During the year ended December 30, 2018, the decrease in
contract liabilities of $31.5 million was primarily due to the attainment of milestones billings for a variety of
projects. During the year ended December 30, 2018, we recognized revenue of $94.4 million that was included
in contract liabilities as of December 31, 2017. During the year ended December 31, 2017, we recognized
revenue of $58.7 million that was included in contract liabilities as of January 1, 2017.

The following table represents our remaining performance obligations as of December 30, 2018 for our sales

of solar power systems, including projects under sales contracts subject to conditions precedent, and EPC
agreements for developed projects that we are constructing or expect to construct. We expect to recognize
$62.3 million of revenue for such contracts upon transfer of control of the projects.

124

Project
Joint Base Anacostia

Bolling (JBAB) . . . . . . . .

Miyagi Osato Solar Park . .
Various Distribution

Generation Projects1 . . . .

Revenue Category
Solar power systems
sales and EPC services
Solar power systems
sales and EPC services
Solar power systems
sales and EPC services

1

Denotes average percentage of revenue recognized.

EPC
Contract/Partner
Developed
Project

Expected Year
Revenue
Recognition Will
Be Completed

Percentage of
Revenue
Recognized

Constellation
SB Energy and
TOTAL Solar

Various

2019

2019

2020

98.9%

85.0%

87.4%

As of December 30, 2018, we entered into contracts with customers for the future sale of modules and
components for an aggregate transaction price of $466.6 million, the substantial majority of which we expect to
recognize as revenue through 2019. As of December 30, 2018, we had entered into O&M contracts of
utility-scale PV solar power systems. We expect to recognize $10.6 million of revenue during the non-cancellable
term of these O&M contracts over an average period of three months.

Note 4. BUSINESS COMBINATION AND DIVESTITURES

Formation of SunStrong Capital Holdings, LLC (‘‘SunStrong’’) Joint Venture and Transfer of Interest in
Residential Lease Portfolio

We offer a solar lease program, in partnership with tax-equity investors, which provides U.S. residential
customers SunPower systems under 20-year lease agreements that include system maintenance and warranty
coverage. The residential leases are classified as either operating or sales-type leases (the ‘‘Residential Lease
Portfolio’’) in accordance with the relevant accounting guidelines. The arrangement with the tax equity investor
is facilitated through the sale equity interests in a solar project company that has ownership of the residential
lease assets. We retain controlling equity interests in the solar project company and the tax-equity investor
acquires non-controlling equity interests with the intention of monetizing the tax attributes that will be generated
by the residential lease assets. On July 10, 2018, we created SunStrong Capital Holdings, LLC (‘‘SunStrong’’) to
own and operate a portion of our residential lease assets and subsequently contributed to SunStrong our
controlling equity interests in the aforementioned solar project companies.

As part of our previously announced decision to sell a portion of our interest in our Residential Lease

Portfolio, on November 5, 2018, we entered into a Purchase and Sale agreement (the ‘‘PSA’’) with HA
SunStrong Capital LLC (‘‘HA SunStrong Parent’’), a subsidiary of Hannon Armstrong, to sell 49.0% membership
interests in SunStrong for cash proceeds of $10.0 million (the ‘‘Transaction’’). Following the closing of the PSA,
we also entered into an Amended and Restated Limited Liability Company Operating Agreement (the ‘‘Operating
Agreement’’) with HA SunStrong Parent that results in the operation of SunStrong as a joint venture entity. In
addition, we have been retained by SunStrong to provide management services, asset management services and
O&M services. The services that will be provided are priced consistently with market rates for such services and
the agreements are terminable by SunStrong for convenience.

In evaluating the accounting treatment for the transaction described above, we concluded that the Residential

Lease Portfolio meets the definition of a business and then proceeded to assess whether SunPower has a
controlling financial interest in SunStrong in accordance with the relevant consolidation accounting guidance. We
have offered SunStrong certain substantive, non-standard indemnifications related to cash flow losses arising
from a recapture of California property taxes on account of a change in ownership, recapture of federal tax
attributes and cash flow losses from leases that do not generate the promised savings to homeowners. The
maximum exposure to loss arising from the indemnifications is limited to the consideration received for the solar
power systems. While our retention of certain indemnification obligations on behalf of SunStrong may require us
to absorb losses that are not proportionate with our equity interests, we do not have the power to unilaterally
make decisions that affect the performance of SunStrong. Under the Operating Agreement, we and HA SunStrong
Parent are given equal governing rights and all major decisions, including among others, approving or modifying
the budget, terminating service providers, incurring indebtedness, refinancing any existing loans, declaring
distributions, commencing or settling any claims, require unanimous consent. Therefore, we concluded that we do
not control SunStrong nor are we the primary beneficiary of SunStrong. Accordingly, we deconsolidated

125

SunStrong and thereby deconsolidated the Residential Lease Portfolio including the associated non-recourse
financing debt of $561.6 million as of the date of sale. We have accounted for our retained investment in
SunStrong as an equity method investment and have estimated the fair value of the retained interest at
$9.6 million. We computed the fair value for our retained investment consistent with the methodology and
assumptions that market participants would use in their estimates of fair value. Determining the fair value
involves significant estimates and assumptions. We used the income approach to estimate the fair value of our
retained investment in Residential Lease Portfolio. The income approach is based on the discounted cash flow
method that uses the estimates for forecasted future financial performance, including assumptions for, among
others, forecasted contractual lease income, lease expenses, residual value of these lease assets and long-term
discount rates, and forecasted default rates over the lease term and discount rates, some of which require
significant judgment by management. These estimates are developed based on historical data and various internal
estimates. Projected cash flows are then discounted to a present value employing a discount rate that properly
accounts for the estimated market weighted-average cost of capital, as well as any risk unique to the subject cash
flows. In addition to the cash proceeds noted above, we are entitled to additional cash and non-cash
consideration that is described below.

On August 10, 2018, SunStrong Capital Acquisition, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SunStrong

(‘‘Mezzanine Loan 1 Borrower’’), and SunStrong Capital Lender LLC, a subsidiary of Hannon Armstrong,
entered into a mezzanine loan agreement under which Mezzanine Loan 1 Borrower borrowed a subordinated,
mezzanine loan of $110.5 million (the ‘‘Mezzanine Loan 1’’) and incurred issuance costs of $1.4 million related
to the loan. On August 31, 2018, we repaid a principal amount of $2.1 million that resulted in an adjusted
Mezzanine Loan 1 balance, net of issuance costs, of $107.0 million. In connection with the closing of the PSA,
SunStrong assumed all current and future debt service obligations associated with Mezzanine Loan 1. The
assumption of such debt, although a non-cash transaction for us, was reflected in the determination of the loss
recognized upon deconsolidation of the Residential Lease Portfolio.

On November 5, 2018, SunStrong Capital Acquisition OF, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SunStrong

(‘‘Mezzanine Loan 2 Borrower’’), and SunStrong Capital Lender 2 LLC, a subsidiary of Hannon Armstrong,
entered into a loan agreement under which, Mezzanine Loan 2 Borrower may borrow a subordinated, mezzanine
loan of up to $32.0 million (the ‘‘Mezzanine Loan 2’’). The borrowing facilities provided by the Mezzanine Loan
2 have been determined in consideration of the residential lease assets for which we have either completed
construction or have the obligation to complete construction after November 5, 2018. On November 20, 2018,
Mezzanine Loan 2 Borrower borrowed approximately $24.6 million and distributed $19.6 million of the proceeds
to us. The remaining proceeds of $5.0 million represents additional consideration that is held in a reserve by
SunStrong and the proceeds will be distributed to us upon completion of our contractual obligations by the
second quarter of 2019. Mezzanine Loan 2 Borrower is expected to draw an additional approximately
$5.6 million against the Mezzanine Loan 2 of which approximately $4.0 million is associated with residential
lease assets for which construction was completed. On December 21, 2018, we received $4.6 million as a special
distribution from SunStrong. The remaining amount of $1.0 million represents additional consideration related to
residential lease assets for which we will provide construction services after the close of the Transaction.

On November 5, 2018, the proceeds generated from the sale of future solar renewable energy credits, along

with equity interests held by SunStrong in the underlying solar project companies, were pledged to secure a
warehousing loan from Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank (‘‘Credit Agricole’’). Borrowed Sunshine,
LLC, (‘‘CA Loan Borrower’’) formerly one of our wholly-owned subsidiaries, entered into a loan agreement with
Credit Agricole on January 5, 2018 under which the CA Loan Borrower may borrow a subordinated loan of up
to $170.0 million. The CA Loan Borrower expects to draw an additional amount of approximately $17.5 million
of which approximately $11.8 million is associated with residential lease assets for which construction was
completed. On November 29, 2018, we received $4.1 million and on December 27, 2018, we received
$7.7 million as a special distribution from SunStrong. The remaining amount of approximately $5.7 million
represents additional consideration related to residential lease assets for which we will provide construction
services after the close of the Transaction.

Tax-equity investors are required to make contributions to the solar project companies upon achievement of

certain condition precedents. Contributions of approximately $5.6 million will be distributed to us as the
developer of the Residential Lease Portfolio. During the period from the date of sale and for the year ended
December 30, 2018, cash proceeds of $4.2 million were received. The remaining proceeds of $1.4 million

126

represents additional consideration related to residential lease assets for which we will provide construction
services after the close of the Transaction. In addition, on December 21, 2018, we received $3.2 million as a
special distribution from SunStrong for transferring our rights to the future solar renewable energy credits
(‘‘SREC’’) associated with the residential lease assets. The tax-equity investor contribution and the special SREC
distribution was reflected in the determination of the loss recognized upon deconsolidation of the Residential
Lease Portfolio.

Other costs and expenses associated with the Transaction of $2.9 million include professional services
including legal, advisory and banking support. We have also recorded a liability of $5.3 million associated with
our certain warranty obligations for defects in materials and workmanship related to installed systems contributed
to SunStrong.

On November 28, 2018, SunStrong closed its $400.0 million Solar Asset Backed Notes, Series 2018-1
(‘‘Notes’’). The Notes were priced at a fixed interest rate of 5.68% per annum and have an anticipated repayment
date in November 2028 and rated final maturity date in November 2048. The Notes were issued by a special
purpose entity, SunStrong 2018-1 Issuer, LLC, an indirectly wholly-owned subsidiary of SunStrong. On
December 4, 2018, we received a special cash distribution of $12.9 million.

In connection with the sale transactions, we recognized a $62.3 million net loss on the sale within ‘‘Loss on
sale and impairment of residential lease assets’’ in our Consolidated Statements of Operations for the year ended
December 30, 2018.

The assets, liabilities and equity of the Residential Lease Portfolio on the disposal date were as follows:

(In thousands)
Cash and equivalents1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Restricted cash and equivalents, current portion1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accounts receivable, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Prepaid expenses and other current assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Restricted cash and equivalents, net of current portion1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Property, plant and equipment, net. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Solar power systems leased and to be leased, net. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Long term financing receivables, net - held for sale. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other long-term assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Accounts payable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accrued liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities, current portion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities, net of current portion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Short-term debt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Long-term debt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other long-term liabilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Redeemable noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total liabilities and equity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

At Disposal Date

$ 16,333
9,127
23,430
26,097
65,947
871
262,756
388,180
17,633

810,374

—
1,726
1,660
25,477
8,969
445,661
11,164
15,375
61,865

571,897

Net assets related to sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$238,477

127

The net consideration recognized from the sale is as follows:

(In thousands)
Proceeds from sale of membership interest in SunStrong1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Assumption of Mezzanine Loan 1 by SunStrong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net proceeds from first draw on Mezzanine Loan 21 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Special distributions and tax-equity contribution1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Construction service and Mezzanine Loan 2 reserve proceeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other costs and expenses related to sale1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net consideration recognized from sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$ 10,000
106,958
19,560
36,190
13,596
(2,879)

$183,425

1

Cash consideration received, net of other costs and expenses, and cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash sold, is reflected as a cash
outflow from the sale of our equity interest in the residential lease portfolio on the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows.

The net loss on sale for the year ended December 30, 2018 is presented in the following table.

(In thousands)

Net consideration recognized from sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SunPower retained equity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net assets related to sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Warranty obligation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Obligations to complete leases under construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Net loss on sale. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$ 183,425
9,649
(238,477)
(5,308)
(11,616)

$ (62,327)

Acquisition of SolarWorld Americas Inc.

On April 16, 2018, we entered into a Sale and Purchase Agreement (the ‘‘Sale and Purchase Agreement’’)
pursuant to which we agreed to purchase all of SolarWorld AG’s shares of stock in SolarWorld Americas Inc.
(‘‘SolarWorld Americas’’), and SolarWorld Industries Deutschland GmbH’s partnership interest in SolarWorld
Industries America LP. On August 21, 2018, we terminated the Sale and Purchase Agreement and entered into an
Asset Purchase Agreement with SolarWorld Americas, pursuant to which we agreed to purchase certain assets of
SolarWorld Americas in exchange for consideration of $26.0 million in cash, subject to certain closing and
post-closing adjustments and other contingent payments. In connection with the termination of the Sale and
Purchase Agreement, we have recognized an expense of $20.0 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2018
in sales, general and administrative expense. On October 1, 2018, we completed the acquisition of certain assets
of SolarWorld Americas, including its Hillsboro, Oregon facility and a significant portion of its manufacturing
workforce of more than 200 employees. The acquisition will provide us with U.S. manufacturing capability to
serve the U.S. market demand and SolarWorld Americas provides a platform for us to implement our commercial
P-Series solar panel manufacturing technology and selected R&D activities.

The acquisition was accounted for under the acquisition method of accounting, with SunPower identified as

the acquirer. The purchase consideration consisted of $26.0 million in cash paid according to the following
schedule: (i) $2.0 million upon entering into the Sale and Purchase Agreement, (ii) $15.0 million upon closing,
and (iii) $9.0 million six months following closing. In addition, the acquisition agreement provides for additional
purchase consideration based on the residual asset value as of 120 days post-close (the ‘‘RAV Payment’’) and
earn-out payments should any funds be received in association with the outcome of anti-dumping and
countervailing duties trade cases (the ‘‘AD/CVD’’). Recovery of any funds related to the AD/CVD trade cases,
net of legal fees, shall be distributed to us and SolarWorld Americas pursuant to the terms of the Asset Purchase
Agreement. Accordingly, we recorded contingent liabilities totaling $4.1 million for the estimated fair value of
the RAV and AD/CVD earn-out payments. We also recorded a contingent asset of $3.2 million representing the
estimated fair value of the contingent consideration we are entitled to as of the acquisition date.

Concurrent with the close of the Asset Purchase Agreement, we and SolarWorld Americas also entered into
(i) supply agreement under which SolarWorld Americas agreed to purchase a minimum purchase commitment of
18 MW of solar cells for a period of three months following closing, and (ii) module facility lease agreement for
a period of three months for the purpose of manufacturing SolarWorld Americas solar products. Based on the

128

expected revenue from the solar cells sales and rental lease income from SolarWorld Americas and the
unavoidable costs associated with these contracts including among others, payroll, direct materials and utilities,
we determined the contracts to be below market-based terms and recorded an onerous contact liability of
$7.9 million as of the acquisition date.

The operating results of SolarWorld Americas, which have been included in our consolidated financial

statements since the closing date of the acquisition, have not been significant. The aggregate amount of
consideration paid was allocated to SolarWorld America’s net tangible assets based on their estimated fair values
as of October 1, 2018. We engaged a third-party valuation expert to assist in determining the fair value of
SolarWorld’s tangible assets and contingent consideration. Tangible assets consist of land, building, site
improvements and manufacturing equipment. The fair values of the tangible assets were determined using a
combination of cost and market approaches based on estimated replacement costs, recent and comparable
transactions and adjustments for economic obsolescence, customization and marketability. The fair values of the
contingent consideration were determined using an income approach based on a real option method to value the
RAV Payment and a scenario-based method which considered the estimated probability-weighted recovery and
discount rate that captures a market participant’s view of the risk associated with the expected payments for the
AD/CVD earn-out payment.

Of the total purchase price of $30.1 million, consisting of cash consideration of $26.0 million and
contingent consideration of $4.1 million described above, $37.4 million was attributed to property, plant and
equipment, $3.1 million was attributed to contingent assets related to the AD/CVD Trade cases and the remaining
$10.4 million was primarily attributed to the net liabilities assumed. No goodwill was recognized in connection
with the transaction.

Divestment of Microinverter Business

On August 9, 2018, we completed the sale of certain assets and intellectual property related to the
production of microinverters to Enphase Energy, Inc. (‘‘Enphase’’) in exchange for $25.0 million in cash and
7.5 million shares of Enphase common stock (the ‘‘Closing Shares’’), pursuant to an Asset Purchase Agreement
(the ‘‘Purchase Agreement’’) entered into on June 12, 2018. We received the Closing Shares and $15.0 million
cash payment upon closing, and received the final $10.0 million cash payment of the purchase price on
December 10, 2018.

In connection with the closing of the Purchase Agreement, we and Enphase entered into a master supply

agreement (‘‘MSA’’) under which we will exclusively procure module-level power electronics and related
equipment for use in the U.S. residential market from Enphase for a period of five years. The MSA contains
certain minimum volume and pricing commitments and exclusivity provisions, the breach of which would entitle
Enphase to certain liquidated damages. The initial term of the MSA is through December 31, 2023, and the MSA
term shall automatically be extended for successive two-year periods unless either party provides written notice
of non-renewal. The MSA also includes customary provisions relating to requirements forecasting, warranty,
liability, and quality assurance provisions. In accordance with our consideration of the terms of this arrangement
and analysis of market pricing for products covered by the MSA, we believe the MSA is consistent with
market-based terms observed in the module-level power electronics market.

In addition, in connection with the closing of the Purchase Agreement, we and Enphase also entered in a
Stockholders Agreement to establish certain of our rights and obligations related to the Closing Shares, including
our right to appoint one person to the Enphase board of directors, a six-month lock up period, certain additional
transfer restrictions on the Closing Shares, registration rights, and voting, standstill and other undertakings by us.

Upon closing of this transaction, we recognized a gain which is summarized in the following table:

(In thousands)

Cash consideration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Closing shares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Less transaction costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total consideration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Assets sold. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gain on business divestiture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As of
August 9, 2018

$25,000
42,600
(1,743)

65,857
(6,510)

$59,347

129

We utilized the quoted price in active markets for the acquired Enphase common stock (a Level 1 input
under the fair value measurement standards) to value the Closing Shares. For the year ended December 30, 2018,
we recognized a $59.3 million gain on business divestiture included on our Consolidated Statements of
Operations.

Note 5. OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS

The following table present details of our acquired other intangible assets, net:

(In thousands)

As of December 30, 2018:
Patents and purchased technology1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As of December 31, 2017:
Patents and purchased technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gross

Accumulated
Amortization

Net

$42,893

$42,893

$(30,311)

$(30,311)

$12,582

$12,582

$52,313

$52,313

$(26,794)

$(26,794)

$25,519

$25,519

1

In connection with the divestment of our microinverter business on August 9, 2018, we disposed patents and purchased technology with
gross amount of $10.2 million and net book value of $4.1 million. Refer to ‘‘Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestiture’’ for
further details on the transaction.

Aggregate amortization expense for intangible assets totaled $9.6 million and $19.7 million and

$13.0 million for fiscal year 2018, 2017 and 2016, respectively. Aggregate impairment loss for intangible assets
amounted to zero, zero and $4.7 million for fiscal year 2018, 2017 and 2016, respectively.

As of December 30, 2018, the estimated future amortization expense related to intangible assets with finite

useful lives is as follows:

(In thousands)

Fiscal Year

2019. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2020. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Thereafter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total future amortization expense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Amount

$ 7,819
4,749
14

$12,582

Note 6. BALANCE SHEET COMPONENTS

Accounts Receivable, Net

(In thousands)
Accounts receivable, gross1,2,3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Less: allowance for doubtful accounts4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Less: allowance for sales returns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Accounts receivable, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

$193,980
(16,906)
(1,469)

$175,605

$242,327
(35,387)
(1,974)

$204,966

1

2

3

Includes short-term financing receivables held for sale associated with solar power systems leased of $1.3 million and $19.1 million as
of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively (see ‘‘Note 7. Leasing’’).
We pledged accounts receivable of zero and $1.7 million as of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively, to third-party
investors as security for our contractual obligations.

On December 10, 2018, we entered into a one-year factoring arrangement and sold to BPI France our Euro denominated accounts
receivable related to our French customers for an amount of approximately $26.3 million. Under this arrangement, we provided the
bank full recourse for any loss should customers fail to pay when payment is due. The advance payment amount under this program is
limited at face value of the sold invoices. We have accounted for this arrangement as a sale of financial assets as effective control over
these financial assets has been surrendered and are excluded from our Consolidated Balance Sheet. Total cost associated with this
arrangement was $0.1 million during the year ended December 30, 2018. As of December 30, 2018, uncollected accounts receivable
from the end customers under this arrangement were $21.0 million.

130

4

For the year ended December 30, 2018, we recognized an allowance for losses of $4.7 million on the short-term financing receivables
associated with solar power systems leased (see ‘‘Note 7. Leasing’’). For the year ended December 31, 2017, the Company recognized
an allowance for losses of $5.8 million on the short-term financing receivables associated with solar power systems leased.

(In thousands)

Allowance for doubtful accounts: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Year ended December 30, 2018 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Year ended December 31, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Year ended January 1, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Allowance for sales returns: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Year ended December 30, 2018 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Year ended December 31, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Year ended January 1, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Valuation allowance for deferred tax assets: . . . . . . .
Year ended December 30, 2018 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Year ended December 31, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Year ended January 1, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Inventories

(In thousands)

Balance at
Beginning of
Period

Charges
(Releases) to
Expenses /
Revenues

Deductions

Balance at
End of Period

$ 28,895
20,380
15,505

$ 12,519
15,609
7,319

$(24,508)
(7,094)
(2,445)

$ 16,906
28,895
20,380

1,974
2,433
1,907

448,723
297,530
83,370

(505)
(459)
526

(43,800)
151,193
214,160

1,469
1,974
2,433

404,923
448,723
297,530

—
—
—

—
—
—

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

Raw materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Work-in-process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Finished goods. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Inventories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$ 58,378
86,639
163,129

$308,146

$ 59,288
111,164
182,377

$352,829

Prepaid Expenses and Other Current Assets

(In thousands)
Deferred project costs1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
VAT receivables, current portion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deferred costs for solar power systems to be leased. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Derivative financial instruments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other receivables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Prepaid taxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other prepaid expenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other current assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Prepaid expenses and other current assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

$ 30,394
9,506
17,805
729
48,062
853
23,568
266

$131,183

$ 33,534
11,561
25,076
2,612
49,015
426
23,434
551

$146,209

1

As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had pledged deferred project costs of zero, and $2.9 million, respectively, to
third-party investors as security for our contractual obligations.

131

Project Assets - Plants and Land

(In thousands)

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

Project assets — plants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Project assets — land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Project assets — plants and land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Project assets — plants and land, current portion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Project assets — plants and land, net of current portion. . . . . . . . . . . . .

$10,334
666

$11,000

$10,796

$

204

$ 90,879
12,184

$103,063

$103,063

$

—

As a result of our evaluation of our ability to recover the costs incurred to date for our solar development

assets, we wrote off $24.7 million of costs in the first quarter of 2018. Such charges were recorded as a
component of cost of revenue for the twelve months ended December 30, 2018. While we considered all
reasonably available information, the estimate includes significant risks and uncertainties as the pricing
environment in the solar industry is currently volatile with increased uncertainty brought about by the tariffs
imposed pursuant to the Section 201 trade case. For the year ended December 30, 2018, we completed an
arrangement with a customer to sell our remaining U.S. power plant development portfolio. Based on the various
performance obligations in the arrangement and our estimates of variable considerations we are entitled to upon
achievement of certain performance milestones, we recognized the majority of the gross profit of $21.1 million
for the year ended December 30, 2018, when control over the assets transferred to the customer.

Property, Plant and Equipment, Net

(In thousands)

Manufacturing equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Land and buildings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Leasehold improvements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Solar power systems2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Computer equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Furniture and fixtures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Construction-in-process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Property, plant and equipment, gross . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Less: accumulated depreciation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Property, plant and equipment, net1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

$ 112,904
161,299
119,597
544,139
98,274
10,594
9,678

1,056,485
(216,614)

$ 406,026
197,084
297,522
451,678
111,183
12,621
14,166

1,490,280
(342,435)

$ 839,871

$1,147,845

1

2

Includes a non-cash impairment charge of $369.2 million recorded in fiscal 2018 associated with SunPower Technologies segment,
which excludes all solar power systems as these are part of the SunPower Energy Services segment.

Includes $519.6 million and $419.0 million of solar power systems associated with sale-leaseback transactions under the financing
method as of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively, which are depreciated using the straight-line method to their
estimated residual values over the lease terms of up to 25 years (see ‘‘Note 7. Leasing’’).

Property, Plant and Equipment, Net, by Geography

(In thousands)

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

United States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Philippines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Malaysia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mexico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Europe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Property, plant and equipment, net, by geography1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$575,451
104,639
126,056
21,566
12,043
116

$839,871

$ 488,970
325,601
233,824
80,560
18,767
123

$1,147,845

1

Property, plant and equipment, net by geography is based on the physical location of the assets.

132

Impairment of Property, Plant and Equipment

In the second quarter of fiscal 2018, we announced our proposed plan to change our corporate structure into

upstream and downstream business units, and long-term strategy to upgrade our integrated back connectivity
(‘‘IBC’’) technology to next generation technology (‘‘NGT’’ or Maxeon 5). Accordingly, we expect to upgrade
the equipment associated with our manufacturing operations for the production of Maxeon 5 over the next
several years. Because of these planned changes that will impact the utilization of our manufacturing assets and
continued pricing challenges in the industry, we determined that indicators of impairment existed and therefore
performed a recoverability test by estimating future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated from
the use of these asset groups. Based on the test performed, we determined that our estimate of future
undiscounted net cash flows was insufficient to recover the carrying value of the upstream business unit’s assets
and consequently performed an impairment analysis by comparing the carrying value of the asset group to its
estimated fair value.

In estimating the fair value of the long-lived assets, we made estimates and judgments that we believe

reasonable market participants would make, using Level 3 inputs under ASC 820. The impairment evaluation
utilized a discounted cash flow analysis inclusive of assumptions for forecasted profit, operating expenses, capital
expenditures, remaining useful life of our manufacturing assets, a discount rate, as well as market and cost
approach valuations performed by a third-party valuation specialist, all of which require significant judgment by
us.

In accordance with such evaluation, we recognized a non-cash impairment charge of $369.2 million for the
year ended December 30, 2018. The total impairment loss was allocated to the long-lived assets of the group on
a pro rata basis using the relative carrying amounts of those assets, except that the loss allocated to an individual
long-lived asset of the group did not reduce the carrying amount of that asset below its determined fair value. As
a result, non-cash impairment charges of $355.1 million, $12.8 million and $1.2 million were allocated to ‘‘Cost
of revenue’’, ‘‘Research and development’’ and ‘‘Sales, general and administrative’’, respectively, on our
Consolidated Statements of Operations for the year ended December 30, 2018. Further, the $355.1 million
non-cash impairment charge within ‘‘Cost of revenue’’ was allocated to our SunPower Technology segment in
fiscal 2018.

Other Long-term Assets

(In thousands)

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

Equity investments with readily determinable fair value . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Equity investments without readily determinable fair value . . . . . . . . . . . .
Equity method investments1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other long-term assets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$ 36,225
8,810
43,659
73,339

$162,033

$

—
35,840
450,000
60,858

$546,698

1

2

On June 19, 2018, we completed the sale of our equity interest in the 8point3 Group. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31,
2017, our investment in the 8point3 Group had a carrying value of zero and $382.7 million, respectively (see ‘‘Note 11. Equity
Investments’’).
As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had pledged deferred project costs of zero and $6.4 million, respectively, to
third-party investors as security for our contractual obligations.

Accrued Liabilities

(In thousands)

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

Employee compensation and employee benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deferred revenue1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interest payable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Short-term warranty reserves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Restructuring reserve. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
VAT payables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$44,337
4,251
11,786
38,161
6,310
8,325

$53,225
5,805
15,396
25,222
3,886
8,691

133

(In thousands)

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

Derivative financial instruments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Legal expenses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Taxes payable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Liability due to supply agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1,161
12,442
19,146
28,045
61,288

1,452
48,503
21,307
21,389
26,895

Accrued liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$235,252

$231,771

1

Consists of advance consideration received from customers under the residential lease program which is accounted for in accordance
with the lease accounting guidance.

Other Long-term Liabilities

(In thousands)
Deferred revenue1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Long-term warranty reserves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Long-term sale-leaseback financing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Unrecognized tax benefits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Long-term pension liability. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Derivative financial instruments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Long-term liability due to supply agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Other long-term liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

$ 55,764
134,105
583,418
16,815
2,567
152
28,198
18,117

$839,136

$105,221
156,082
479,597
19,399
4,465
1,174
57,611
18,793

$842,342

1

Consists of advance consideration received from customers under the residential lease program which is accounted for in accordance
with the lease accounting guidance.

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss

(In thousands)

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

Cumulative translation adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net unrealized gain (loss) on derivatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net gain on long-term pension liability adjustment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deferred taxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Accumulated other comprehensive loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$(11,121)
(145)
7,066
50

$ (4,150)

$(6,631)
(541)
4,164
—

$(3,008)

Note 7. LEASING

Residential Lease Program

We offer a solar lease program, which provides U.S. residential customers with SunPower systems under
20-year lease agreements that include system maintenance and warranty coverage. Leases are classified as either
operating or sales-type leases in accordance with the relevant accounting guidelines.

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Operating Leases

The following table summarizes ‘‘Solar power systems leased and to be leased, net’’ under operating leases

on our Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017:

(In thousands)
Solar power systems leased and to be leased, net1,2: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Solar power systems leased . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Solar power systems to be leased. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Less: accumulated depreciation and impairment3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Solar power systems leased and to be leased, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

$139,343
12,158

151,501
(58,944)

$ 92,557

$ 749,697
26,830

776,527
(407,309)

$ 369,218

1

2

3

Solar power systems leased and to be leased, net, are physically located exclusively in the United States.

As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had pledged solar assets with an aggregate book value of zero and
$112.4 million, respectively, to third-party investors as security for our contractual obligations. The book value of pledged assets
represents assets legally held by the respective flip partnerships.

For the year ended December 30, 2018, we recognized a non-cash impairment charge of $74.9 million on solar power systems leased
and to be leased.

The following table presents our minimum future rental receipts on operating leases placed in service as of

December 30, 2018:

(In thousands)

Fiscal 2019

Fiscal 2020

Fiscal 2021

Fiscal 2022

Fiscal 2023

Thereafter

Total

Minimum future
rentals on
operating leases
placed in
service1 . . . . . . . .

$1,224

$1,186

$1,189

$1,193

$1,197

$18,359

$24,348

1

Minimum future rentals on operating leases placed in service does not include contingent rentals that may be received from customers
under agreements that include performance-based incentives.

Sales-Type Leases

As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, our net investment in sales-type leases presented within
‘‘Accounts receivable, net’’ and ‘‘Long-term financing receivables, net’’ on our Consolidated Balance Sheets was
as follows:

(In thousands)
Financing receivables, held for sale1:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Minimum lease payments receivable2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Unguaranteed residual value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Unearned income. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Allowance for estimated losses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Net financing receivables, held for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Net financing receivables - current, held for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Net financing receivables - non-current held for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

$ 43,939
4,450
(8,859)
(18,656)

$ 20,874

$ 1,282

$ 19,592

$ 690,249
73,344
(115,854)
(297,972)

$ 349,767

$ 19,095

$ 330,672

1

2

As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had pledged financing receivables of zero and $113.4 million, respectively, to
third-party investors as security for our contractual obligations. The book value of pledged assets represents assets legally held by the
respective flip partnerships.

Net of allowance for doubtful accounts amounting to $0.0 million and $6.1 million, as of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017,
respectively.

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As of December 30, 2018, future maturities of net financing receivables for sales-type leases were as

follows:

(In thousands)

Fiscal 2019

Fiscal 2020

Fiscal 2021

Fiscal 2022

Fiscal 2023

Thereafter

Total

Scheduled

maturities of
minimum lease
payments
receivable1 . . . . . .

$2,126

$2,129

$2,137

$2,146

$2,155

$33,246

$43,939

1

Minimum future rentals on sales-type leases placed in service does not include contingent rentals that may be received from customers
under agreements that include performance-based incentives.

Impairment and Sale of Residential Lease Assets

In December 2017, the Board of Directors approved a future sale of a portion of our Residential Lease

Portfolio that resulted in the sale of partial equity interests in SunStrong, our wholly owned subsidiary, to
Hannon Armstrong on November 5, 2018 - See Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestitures for further
details. We continue to retain certain residential assets on our consolidated financial statements as of
December 30, 2018, which we expect to sell in 2019, and these assets have been tested for impairment as
described below.

We evaluate our long-lived assets, including property, plant and equipment, solar power systems leased and

to be leased, and other intangible assets with finite lives, for impairment whenever events or changes in
circumstances indicate that the carrying value of such assets may not be recoverable. Factors considered
important that could result in an impairment review include significant under-performance relative to expected
historical or projected future operating results, significant changes in the manner of use of acquired assets, and
significant negative industry or economic trends. Our impairment evaluation of long-lived assets includes an
analysis of estimated future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by the assets over their
remaining estimated useful lives. If our estimate of future undiscounted net cash flows is insufficient to recover
the carrying value of the assets over the remaining estimated useful lives, it records an impairment loss in the
amount by which the carrying value of the assets exceeds the fair value. Fair value is generally measured based
on either quoted market prices, if available, or discounted cash flow analysis.

Financing receivables are generated by solar power systems leased to residential customers under sales-type

leases. Financing receivables represent gross minimum lease payments to be received from customers over a
period commensurate with the remaining lease term and the system’s estimated residual value, net of unearned
income and allowance for estimated losses. Our evaluation of the recoverability of these financing receivables is
based on evaluation of the likelihood, based on current information and events, and whether we will be able to
collect all amounts due according to the contractual terms of the underlying lease agreements. In accordance with
this evaluation, we recognize an allowance for losses on financing receivables based on our estimate of the
amount equal to the probable losses net of recoveries. The combination of the leased solar power systems
discussed in the preceding paragraph together with the lease financing receivables is referred to as the
‘‘Residential Lease Portfolio.’’

In conjunction with our efforts to generate more available liquid funds and simplify our balance sheets, we

made the decision to sell a portion of our interest in the Residential Lease Portfolio and engaged an external
investment banker to assist with our related marketing efforts in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017. As a result of
these events, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, we determined it was necessary to evaluate the potential for
impairment in our ability to recover the carrying amount of our Residential Lease Portfolio.

In proceeding with the impairment evaluation, we determined that financing receivables related to sales-type

leases, which were previously classified as held for investment, qualified as held for sale based on our decision
to sell our interest in the Residential Lease Portfolio. Accordingly, we recognized an allowance for estimated
losses for the amount by which cost exceeded fair value. In addition, we reviewed the cash flows we would
expect to derive from the underlying asset that we recover from the lessees (unguaranteed residual value). Due to
our planned sale of our Residential Lease Portfolio and based on the indication of value received, we determined
that the decline in estimated residual value was other than temporary.

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We performed a recoverability test for the assets subject to operating leases by estimating future
undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by the assets, based on our own specific alternative
courses of action under consideration. The alternative courses were either to sell or refinance the assets subject to
operating leases, or hold the assets until the end of their previously estimated useful lives. Upon consideration of
the alternatives, we considered the probability of selling the assets subject to operating leases and factored the
indicative value obtained from a prospective purchaser together with the probability of retaining the assets and
the estimated future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by holding the assets until the end of
their previously estimated useful lives in the recoverability test. Based on the evaluation performed, we
determined that as of December 31, 2017, the estimate of future undiscounted net cash flows was insufficient to
recover the carrying value of the assets subject to operating leases, and consequently performed an impairment
analysis by comparing the carrying value of the assets to their estimated fair value.

We computed the fair value for the financing receivables associated with sales-type leases and long-lived

assets subject to operating leases using consistent methodology and assumptions that market participants would
use in their estimates of fair value. The estimates and judgments about future cash flows were made using an
income approach defined as Level 3 inputs under fair value measurement standards. The impairment evaluation
was based on the income approach (specifically a discounted cash flow analysis) and included assumptions for,
among others, forecasted contractual lease income, lease expenses, residual value of these lease assets, long-term
discount rates, and forecasted default rates over the lease term and discount rates, some of which require
significant judgment by us.

We updated the impairment evaluation discussed above to include new leases that were placed in service

since the last evaluation was performed. In accordance with such evaluation, we recognized a non-cash
impairment charge of $189.7 million included in ‘‘Loss on sale and impairment of residential lease assets’’ on the
Consolidated Statement of Operations for the year ended December 30, 2018. Due to the fact that the Residential
Lease Portfolio assets are held in partnership flip structures with noncontrolling interests, we allocated a portion
of the impairment charge related to such noncontrolling interests through the hypothetical liquidation at book
value (‘‘HLBV’’) method. The allocation method applied to the noncontrolling interests and redeemable
noncontrolling interests resulted in a net gain of $9.6 million and a net gain of $150.6 million for the year ended
December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively. As a result, the net impairment charges attributable to
our stockholders totaled $180.1 million and $473.7 million for the year ended December 30, 2018 and December
31, 2017, respectively, and were recorded within the SunPower Energy Services Segment.

The impairment evaluation includes uncertainty because it requires us to make assumptions and to apply
judgment to estimate future cash flows and assumptions. If actual results are not consistent with our estimates
and assumptions used in estimating future cash flows and asset fair values, and if and when a divestiture
transaction occurs, the details and timing of which are subject to change as the final terms are negotiated
between us and the intended purchaser, we may be exposed to additional impairment charges in the future, which
could be material to the results of operations.

Sale-Leaseback Arrangements

We enter into sale-leaseback arrangements under which solar power systems are sold to third parties and

subsequently leased back by us over lease terms of up to 25 years. Separately, we enter into sales of energy
under power purchase agreements (‘‘PPAs’’) with end customers, who host the leased solar power systems and
buy the electricity directly from us under PPAs with terms of up to 25 years. At the end of the lease term, we
have the option to purchase the systems at fair value or may be required to remove the systems and return them
to the third parties.

We have classified our sale-leaseback arrangements of solar power systems not involving integral equipment

as operating leases for which the deferred profit on the sale of these systems is recognized over the term of the
lease. As of December 30, 2018, future minimum lease obligations associated with these systems were
$65.9 million, which will be recognized over the minimum lease terms. Future minimum payments to be
received from customers under PPAs associated with the solar power systems under sale-leaseback arrangements
classified as operating leases will also be recognized over the lease terms of up to 25 years and are contingent
upon the amounts of energy produced by the solar power systems.

Certain sale-leaseback arrangements of solar power systems involve integral equipment, as defined under the

accounting guidance for such transactions, as we have continuing involvement with the solar power systems

137

throughout the lease due to purchase option rights in the arrangements. As a result of such continuing
involvement, we account for each of these transactions as a financing. Under the financing method, the proceeds
received from the sale of the solar power systems are recorded by us as financing liabilities. The financing
liabilities are subsequently reduced by our payments to lease back the solar power systems, less interest expense
calculated based on our incremental borrowing rate adjusted to the rate required to prevent negative amortization.
The solar power systems under the sale-leaseback arrangements remain on our Consolidated Balance Sheets and
are classified within ‘‘Property, plant and equipment, net’’ (see ‘‘Note 6. Balance Sheet Components’’). As of
December 30, 2018, future minimum lease obligations for the sale-leaseback arrangements accounted for under
the financing method were $509.9 million, which will be recognized over the lease terms of up to 30 years.
During fiscal 2018 and 2017, we had net financing proceeds of $32.3 million, and $259.6 million respectively, in
connection with these sale-leaseback arrangements. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the
carrying amount of the sale-leaseback financing liabilities presented within ‘‘Other long-term liabilities’’ on our
Consolidated Balance Sheets was $583.4 million and $479.6 million, respectively. See ‘‘Note 6. Balance Sheet
Components’’ for additional details.

Note 8. FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS

Fair value is estimated by applying the following hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used to measure fair

value into three levels and bases the categorization within the hierarchy upon the lowest level of input that is
available and significant to the fair value measurement (observable inputs are the preferred basis of valuation):

•

•

•

Level 1 — Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

Level 2 — Measurements are inputs that are observable for assets or liabilities, either directly or
indirectly, other than quoted prices included within Level 1.

Level 3 — Prices or valuations that require management inputs that are both significant to the fair
value measurement and unobservable.

Assets and Liabilities Measured at Fair Value on a Recurring Basis

We measure certain assets and liabilities at fair value on a recurring basis. There were no transfers between
fair value measurement levels during any presented period. We did not have any assets or liabilities measured at
fair value on a recurring basis requiring Level 3 inputs as of December 30, 2018 or December 31, 2017.

The following table summarizes our assets and liabilities measured and recorded at fair value on a recurring

basis as of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017:

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

Total Fair
Value

Level 2

Level 1

Total Fair
Value

Level 2

$

729

$ 729

$ —

$2,579

$2,579

(In thousands)

Assets
Prepaid expenses and other current assets: . . . .
Derivative financial instruments (Note 13) . .
Other long-term assets: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Marketable equity investments (Note 11) . . .

Liabilities
Accrued liabilities: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Derivative financial instruments (Note 13) . .
Other long-term liabilities:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Derivative financial instruments (Note 13) . .

Total assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$36,954

$ 729

36,225

—

36,225

$36,225

—

—

$2,579

$2,579

$ 1,161

$1,161

$ —

$1,452

$1,452

Total liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$ 1,313

$1,313

$ —

152

152

—

1,174

$2,626

1,174

$2,626

Other financial assets and liabilities, including our accounts receivable, accounts payable and accrued
liabilities, are carried at cost, which generally approximates fair value due to the short-term nature of these
financial assets and liabilities.

138

Assets and Liabilities Measured at Fair Value on a Non-Recurring Basis

We measure certain investments and non-financial assets (including property, plant and equipment, and other

intangible assets) at fair value on a non-recurring basis in periods after initial measurement in circumstances
when the fair value of such asset is impaired below its recorded cost. As of December 30, 2018, there were no
such items recorded at fair value, with the exception of our property, plant and equipment (see ‘‘Note 6. Balance
Sheet Components’’), residential lease assets (see ‘‘Note 7. Leasing’’), and certain non-marketable equity
investments. As of December 31, 2017, we did not have any other significant assets or liabilities that were
measured at fair value on a non-recurring basis in periods subsequent to initial recognition.

Held-to-Maturity Debt Securities

Our debt securities, classified as held-to-maturity, are Philippine government bonds that we maintain as

collateral for business transactions within the Philippines. These bonds have various maturity dates and are
classified as ‘‘Restricted long-term marketable securities’’ on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. As of December
30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, these bonds had a carrying value of $6.0 million and $6.2 million,
respectively. We record such held-to-maturity investments at amortized cost based on our ability and intent to
hold the securities until maturity. We monitor for changes in circumstances and events that would affect our
ability and intent to hold such securities until the recorded amortized costs are recovered. No
other-than-temporary impairment loss was incurred during any periods presented. The held-to-maturity debt
securities were categorized in Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy.

Equity Investments

The following discusses our marketable equity investments, non-marketable equity investments and equity

method investments.

Marketable Equity Investments

In connection with the divestment of our microinverter business to Enphase on August 9, 2018, we received

7.5 million shares of Enphase common stock (see ‘‘Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestiture’’ for further
details). The common stock was recorded as an equity investment with readily determinable fair value (Level 1),
with changes in fair value recognized in net income in accordance with ASU 2016-01. For the year ended
December 30, 2018, we recognized an unrealized loss of $6.4 million within ‘‘Other, net’’ under other income
(expense), net, on our Consolidated Statement of Operations.

Non-Marketable Equity Investments

Our non-marketable equity investments are securities in privately-held companies without readily

determinable market values. Prior to January 1, 2018, we accounted for the non-marketable equity investments at
cost less impairment. On January 1, 2018, we adopted ASU 2016-01 and elected to adjust the carrying value of
our non-marketable equity securities to cost less impairment, adjusted for observable price changes in orderly
transactions for an identical or similar investment of the same issuer. Non-marketable equity securities are
classified within Level 3 in the fair value hierarchy because we estimate the value based on valuation methods
using a combination of observable and unobservable inputs including valuation ascribed to the issuing company
in subsequent financing rounds, volatility in the results of operations of the issuers and rights and obligations of
the securities we hold. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had $8.8 million and
$35.8 million, respectively, in investments accounted for under the measurement alternative method.

Equity Method Investments

Our investments accounted for under the equity method are described in Note 11. Equity Investments. We

monitor these investments, which are included within ‘‘Other long-term assets’’ in our Consolidated Balance
Sheets, for impairment and record reductions in the carrying values when necessary. Circumstances that indicate
an other-than-temporary decline include Level 3 measurements such as the valuation ascribed to the issuing
company in subsequent financing rounds, decreases in quoted market prices, and declines in the results of
operations of the issuer.

139

We adopted ASC 606 on January 1, 2018, using the full retrospective method, which required us to restate
each prior period presented. Our carrying value in the 8point3 Group materially increased upon adoption which
required us to amend our historical evaluations of the potential for other-than-temporary impairment on our
investment in the 8point3 Group. In accordance with such updated evaluations, we recognized impairment losses
on the 8point3 investment balance during the first and fourth quarters of fiscal 2017 using a combination of
Level 1 and Level 3 measurements. In June 2018, we completed our divestiture of the 8point3 Group (see ‘‘Note
11. Equity Investments’’). As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had $43.7 million and
$450.0 million, respectively, in investments accounted for under the equity method (see ‘‘Note 11. Equity
Investments’’).

Note 9. RESTRUCTURING

February 2018 Restructuring Plan

During the first quarter of fiscal 2018, we adopted a restructuring plan and began implementing initiatives to
reduce operating expenses and cost of revenue overhead in light of the known shorter-term impact of U.S. tariffs
imposed on PV solar cells and modules pursuant to Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974 and our broader
initiatives to control costs and improve cash flow. In connection with the plan, which is expected to be
completed by mid-2019, we expect between 150 and 250 non-manufacturing employees to be affected,
representing approximately 3% of our global workforce, with a portion of those employees exiting from us as
part of a voluntary departure program. The changes to our workforce will vary by country, based on local legal
requirements and consultations with employee works councils and other employee representatives, as appropriate.
We expect to incur restructuring charges totaling between $20 million to $30 million, consisting primarily of
severance benefits (between $11 million and $16 million) and real estate lease termination and other associated
costs (between $9 million and $14 million). We expect between $12 million and $20 million of the charges to be
paid in cash. The actual timing and costs of the plan may differ from our current expectations and estimates. A
substantial portion of such charges were incurred in fiscal 2018. Cumulative costs were $12.4 million as of
December 30, 2018.

December 2016 Restructuring Plan

During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016, we adopted a restructuring plan to reduce costs and focus on
improving cash flow, primarily related to the closure of our Philippine-based Fab 2 manufacturing facility. There
were $2.2 million of charges related to this plan recorded during fiscal 2018 and cumulative costs incurred were
$195.0 million as of December 30, 2018. The restructuring activities were substantially complete as of July 1,
2018, and any remaining costs to be incurred are not expected to be material.

August 2016 Restructuring Plan

During the third quarter of fiscal 2016, we adopted a restructuring plan in response to expected near-term

challenges primarily relating to realigning our Power Plant business unit. In connection with the realignment, we
incurred restructuring charges consisting primarily of severance benefits, asset impairments, lease and related
termination costs, and other associated costs. In fiscal 2018, we incurred net charges of $2.9 million. The
realignment was substantially complete as of December 30, 2018, and we do not expect a significant number of
employees to be affected by remaining actions. Cumulative costs incurred were $38.1 million as of December 30,
2018.

Legacy Restructuring Plans

Prior to fiscal 2016, we implemented approved restructuring plans, related to all segments, to align with
changes in the global solar market, which included the consolidation of our Philippine manufacturing operations,
as well as actions to accelerate operating cost reduction and improve overall operating efficiency. These
restructuring activities were substantially complete as of the second quarter of 2017, and any remaining costs to
be incurred are not expected to be material. Cumulative costs incurred were $143.7 million as of December 30,
2018.

140

The following table summarizes the comparative periods-to-date restructuring charges by plan recognized in

our Consolidated Statements of Operations:

(In thousands)
February 2018 Restructuring Plan:
Severance and benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other costs1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total February 2018 Restructuring Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

December 2016 Plan:
Non-cash impairment charges. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Severance and benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lease and related termination costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other costs1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total December 2016 Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

August 2016 Plan:
Non-cash impairment charges. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Severance and benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lease and related termination costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other costs1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total August 2016 Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Legacy Restructuring Plans:
Non-cash impairment charges. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Severance and benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lease and related termination costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other costs1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total Legacy Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total restructuring charges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

$12,130
257
12,387

$ — $
—
—

—
—
—

—
(799)
6
2,987
2,194

—
2,665
—
254
2,919

147
5,643
707
13,824
20,321

—
(242)
2
989
749

148,791
15,901
—
7,819
172,511

17,926
15,591
557
364
34,438

—
—
—
(3)
(3)
$17,497

—
14
—
(39)
(25)
$21,045

—
350
(171)
62
241
$207,190

1

Other costs primarily represent associated legal and advisory services, and costs of relocating employees.

The following table summarizes the restructuring reserve activities during the year ended December 30,

2018:

(In thousands)
February 2018 Restructuring Plan:
Severance and benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other costs1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total February 2018 Restructuring Plan. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

December 2016 Restructuring Plan:
Severance and benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lease and related termination costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other costs1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total December 2016 Restructuring Plan. . . . . . . . . . . . .

August 2016 Restructuring Plan:
Severance and benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other costs1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total August 2016 Restructuring Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Legacy Restructuring Plans. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total restructuring reserve activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2017

$ —
—
—

1,862
—
54
1,916

1,735
39
1,774
196
$3,886

Fiscal Year

Charges
(Benefits)

(Payments)
Recoveries

$12,130
257
12,387

$ (6,681)
(257)
(6,938)

(799)
6
2,987
2,194

2,665
254
2,919
(3)
$17,497

(1,063)
(6)
(3,041)
(4,110)

(3,788)
(230)
(4,018)
(7)
$(15,073)

2018

$5,449
—
5,449

—
—
—
—

612
63
675
186
$6,310

1

Other costs primarily represent associated legal and advisory services, and costs of relocating employees.

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Note 10. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Facility and Equipment Lease Commitments

We lease certain facilities under non-cancellable operating leases from third parties. As of December 30,
2018, future minimum lease payments for facilities under operating leases were $51.9 million, to be paid over
the remaining contractual terms of up to 29.3 years. We also lease certain buildings, machinery and equipment
under non-cancellable capital leases. As of December 30, 2018, future minimum lease payments for assets under
capital leases were $2.8 million, to be paid over the remaining contractual terms of up to 4.3 years.

Purchase Commitments

We purchase raw materials for inventory and manufacturing equipment from a variety of vendors. During
the normal course of business, in order to manage manufacturing lead times and help assure adequate supply, we
enter into agreements with contract manufacturers and suppliers that either allow them to procure goods and
services based on specifications defined by us, or that establish parameters defining our requirements. In certain
instances, these agreements allow us the option to cancel, reschedule or adjust our requirements based on our
business needs before firm orders are placed. Consequently, purchase commitments arising from these
agreements are excluded from our disclosed future obligations under non-cancellable and unconditional
commitments.

We also have agreements with several suppliers, including some of our non-consolidated investees, for the

procurement of polysilicon, ingots, and wafers, as well as certain module-level power electronics and related
equipment, which specify future quantities and pricing of products to be supplied by three vendors for periods of
up to 2 years and provide for certain consequences, such as forfeiture of advanced deposits and liquidated
damages relating to previous purchases, in the event that we terminate the arrangements or fails to satisfy our
obligations under the agreements.

Future purchase obligations under non-cancellable purchase orders and long-term supply agreements as of
December 30, 2018 are as follows:

(In thousands)

Fiscal 2019

Fiscal 2020

Fiscal 2021

Fiscal 2022

Fiscal 2023

Thereafter

Total1

Future purchase

obligations . . . . . .

$438,428

$374,930

$38,650

$35,425

$32,550

$—

$919,983

1

Total future purchase obligations were composed of $206.7 million related to non-cancellable purchase orders and $713.3 million
related to long-term supply agreements.

We expect that all obligations related to non-cancellable purchase orders for manufacturing equipment will

be recovered through future cash flows of the solar cell manufacturing lines and solar panel assembly lines when
such long-lived assets are placed in service. Factors considered important that could result in an impairment
review include significant under-performance relative to expected historical or projected future operating results,
significant changes in the manner of use of acquired assets, and significant negative industry or economic trends.
Obligations related to non-cancellable purchase orders for inventories match current and forecasted sales orders
that will consume these ordered materials and actual consumption of these ordered materials is regularly
compared to expected demand. We anticipate total obligations related to long-term supply agreements for
inventories, some of which (in the case of polysilicon) are at purchase prices significantly above current market
prices for similar materials, will be recovered because the quantities required to be purchased are expected to be
utilized in the manufacture and profitable sale of solar power products in the future based on our long-term
operating plans. Additionally, in order to reduce inventory and improve working capital, we have periodically
elected to sell polysilicon inventory in the marketplace at prices below our purchase price, thereby incurring a
loss. The terms of the long-term supply agreements are reviewed annually by us and we assess the need for any
accruals for estimated losses on adverse purchase commitments, such as lower of cost or net realizable value
adjustments that will not be recovered by future sales prices, forfeiture of advanced deposits and liquidated
damages, as necessary.

Advances to Suppliers

As noted above, we have entered into agreements with various vendors, some of which are structured as
‘‘take or pay’’ contracts, that specify future quantities and pricing of products to be supplied. Certain agreements

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also provide for penalties or forfeiture of advanced deposits in the event we terminate the arrangements. Under
certain agreements, we were required to make prepayments to the vendors over the terms of the arrangements.
As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, advances to suppliers totaled $171.6 million and
$216.0 million, respectively, of which $37.9 million and $30.7 million, respectively, is classified as Advances to
suppliers, current portion in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. One supplier accounted for 99.6% and 99.0% of
total advances to suppliers as of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively.

Advances from Customers

The estimated utilization of advances from customers included within ‘‘Contract liabilities, current portion’’
and ‘‘Contract liabilities, net of current portion’’ on our Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 30, 2018 is
as follows:

(In thousands)

Fiscal 2019

Fiscal 2020

Fiscal 2021

Fiscal 2022

Fiscal 2023

Thereafter

Total

Estimated utilization
of advances from
customers. . . . . . .

$68,093

$34,143

$11,139

$—

$—

$—

$113,375

We have entered into other agreements with customers who have made advance payments for solar power

products and systems. These advances will be applied as shipments of product occur or upon completion of
certain project milestones. In November 2016, we and Total entered into a four-year, up to 200-MW supply
agreement to support the solarization of Total facilities (see ‘‘Note 2. Transactions with Total and Total S.A.’’); in
March 2017, we received a prepayment totaling $88.5 million. As of December 30, 2018, the advance payment
from Total was $63.7 million, of which $18.4 million was classified as short-term in our Consolidated Balance
Sheets, based on projected shipment dates.

Product Warranties

The following table summarizes accrued warranty activity for fiscal 2018, 2017 and 2016:

(In thousands)

Fiscal Year Ended
2017

2016

2018

Balance at the beginning of the period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accruals for warranties issued during the period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Settlements and adjustments during the period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$181,303
31,628
(40,665)

$161,209
29,689
(9,595)

$164,127
14,575
(17,493)

Balance at the end of the period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$172,266

$181,303

$161,209

In some cases, we may offer customers the option to purchase extended warranties to ensure protection

beyond the standard warranty period. In those circumstances, the warranty is a distinct service and we account
for the extended warranty as a performance obligation and allocates a portion of the transaction price to that
performance obligation. More frequently, customers do not purchase a warranty separately. In those situations, we
account for the warranty as assurance-type warranty, which provides customers with assurance that the product
complies with agreed-upon specifications, and this does not represent a separate performance obligation.

Project Agreements with Customers

Project agreements entered into with our commercial and power plant customers often require us to
undertake obligations including: (i) system output performance warranties, (ii) penalty payments or customer
termination rights if the system we are constructing is not commissioned within specified time frames or other
milestones are not achieved, and (iii) system put-rights whereby we could be required to buy back a customer’s
system at fair value on specified future dates if certain minimum performance thresholds are not met for
specified periods. Historically, our systems have performed significantly above their performance warranty
thresholds, and there have been no cases in which we have had to buy back a system. As of December 30, 2018
and December 31, 2017, we had $3.3 million and $6.4 million, respectively, classified as ‘‘Accrued liabilities,’’
and $6.5 million and $3.1 million, respectively, classified as ‘‘Other long-term liabilities’’ in our Consolidated
Balance Sheets for such obligations.

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Future Financing Commitments

We are required to provide certain funding under agreements with unconsolidated investees, subject to
certain conditions (see ‘‘Note 11. Equity Investments’’). As of December 30, 2018, we have future financing
obligations related to these agreements as follows:

(In thousands)

Year:

2019 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2020 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Amount

$4,140
2,900

$7,040

Liabilities Associated with Uncertain Tax Positions

Total liabilities associated with uncertain tax positions were $16.8 million and $19.4 million as of December

30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively. These amounts are included within ‘‘Other long-term liabilities’’
in our Consolidated Balance Sheets in their respective periods as they are not expected to be paid within the next
12 months. Due to the complexity and uncertainty associated with iour tax positions, we cannot make a
reasonably reliable estimate of the period in which cash settlement, if any, would be made for our liabilities
associated with uncertain tax positions in Other long-term liabilities.

Indemnifications

We are a party to a variety of agreements under which we may be obligated to indemnify the counterparty

with respect to certain matters. Typically, these obligations arise in connection with contracts and license
agreements or the sale of assets, under which we customarily agree to hold the other party harmless against
losses arising from a breach of warranties, representations and covenants related to such matters as title to assets
sold, negligent acts, damage to property, validity of certain intellectual property rights, non-infringement of
third-party rights, and certain tax related matters including indemnification to customers under Section 48(c) of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, regarding solar commercial investment tax credits (‘‘ITCs’’) and
U.S. Treasury Department (‘‘U.S. Treasury’’) cash grant payments under Section 1603 of the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act (each a ‘‘Cash Grant’’). In each of these circumstances, payment by us is typically subject
to the other party making a claim to us that is contemplated by and valid under the indemnification provisions of
the particular contract, which provisions are typically contract-specific, as well as bringing the claim under the
procedures specified in the particular contract. These procedures usually allow us to challenge the other party’s
claims or, in case of breach of intellectual property representations or covenants, to control the defense or
settlement of any third-party claims brought against the other party. Further, our obligations under these
agreements may be limited in terms of activity (typically to replace or correct the products or terminate the
agreement with a refund to the other party), duration or amount. In some instances, we may have recourse
against third parties or insurance covering certain payments made by us.

In certain circumstances, we have provided indemnification to customers and investors under which we are

contractually obligated to compensate these parties for losses they may suffer as a result of reductions in benefits
received under ITCs and U.S. Treasury Cash Grant programs. We apply for ITCs and Cash Grant incentives
based on guidance provided by the Internal Revenue Service (‘‘IRS’’) and the U.S. Treasury, which include
assumptions regarding the fair value of the qualified solar power systems, among others. Certain of our
development agreements, sale-leaseback arrangements, and financing arrangements with tax equity investors,
incorporate assumptions regarding the future level of incentives to be received, which in some instances may be
claimed directly by our customers and investors. Generally, such obligations would arise as a result of reductions
to the value of the underlying solar power systems as assessed by the IRS. At each balance sheet date, we assess
and recognize, when applicable, the potential exposure from these obligations based on all the information
available at that time, including any audits undertaken by the IRS. The maximum potential future payments that
we could have to make under this obligation would depend on the difference between the eligible basis claimed
on the tax filing for the solar energy systems sold or transferred to indemnified parties and the values that the
IRS may redetermine as the eligible basis for the systems for purposes of claiming ITCs or Cash Grants. We use
the eligible basis for tax filing purposes determined with the assistance of independent third-party appraisals to
determine the ITCs that are passed-through to and claimed by the indemnified parties. For sales contracts that

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have such indemnification provisions, we recognize a liability under ASC 460, ‘‘Guarantees,’’ for the estimated
premium that would be required by a guarantor to issue the same guarantee in a standalone arm’s-length
transaction with an unrelated party. We recognize such liabilities at the greater of the fair value of the indemnity
or the contingent liability required to be recognized under ASC 450, ‘‘Contingencies,’’ and reduce the revenue
recognized in the related transaction. We initially estimate the fair value of any such indemnities provided based
on the cost of insurance policies that cover the underlying risks being indemnified and may purchase such
policies to mitigate our exposure to potential indemnification payments. After an indemnification liability is
recorded, we derecognize such amount typically upon expiration or settlement of the arrangement. Changes to
any such indemnification liabilities provided are recorded as adjustments to revenue. As of December 30, 2018,
and December 31, 2017, our provision was $4.2 million and $12.8 million, respectively, for tax related
indemnifications. On June 19, 2018, we completed the sale of our equity interest in the 8point3 Group. In
connection with the transaction, we released approximately $8.3 million of tax related indemnifications
previously recorded as a result of the ASC 606 adoption effective January 1, 2018.

Defined Benefit Pension Plans

We maintain defined benefit pension plans for certain of our non-U.S. employees. Benefits under these plans

are generally based on an employee’s years of service and compensation. Funding requirements are determined
on an individual country and plan basis and are subject to local country practices and market circumstances. The
funded status of the pension plans, which represents the difference between the benefit obligation and fair value
of plan assets, is calculated on a plan-by-plan basis. The benefit obligation and related funded status are
determined using assumptions as of the end of each fiscal year. We recognize the overfunded or underfunded
status of our pension plans as an asset or liability on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. As of December 30, 2018
and December 31, 2017, the underfunded status of our pension plans presented within ‘‘Other long-term
liabilities’’ on our Consolidated Balance Sheets was $2.6 million and $4.5 million, respectively. The impact of
transition assets and obligations and actuarial gains and losses are recorded within ‘‘Accumulated other
comprehensive loss’’ and are generally amortized as a component of net periodic cost over the average remaining
service period of participating employees. Total other comprehensive loss related to our benefit plans was
$2.9 million for the year ended December 30, 2018.

Legal Matters

Class Action and Derivative Suits

On August 16, 2016, a class action lawsuit was filed against us and certain of our officers and directors (the

‘‘Defendants’’) in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on behalf of a class
consisting of those who acquired our securities from February 17, 2016 through August 9, 2016 (the
‘‘Class Period’’). On December 9, 2016, the court appointed a lead plaintiff. Following the withdrawal of the
original lead plaintiff, on August 21, 2017, the court appointed an investor group as lead plaintiff. An amended
complaint was filed on October 17, 2017. The complaint alleged violations of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the
Exchange Act, and Securities and Exchange Commission (‘‘SEC’’) Rule 10b-5. The complaints were filed
following the issuance of our August 9, 2016 earnings release and revised guidance and generally allege that
throughout the Class Period, the Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements and failed to
disclose material adverse facts about our business, operations, and prospects. On April 18, 2018, the court
dismissed the complaint for failure to state a claim, with leave to amend. On May 8, 2018, a second amended
complaint was filed. On October 9, 2018, the court dismissed the complaint for failure to state a claim, with no
further opportunity to amend. The deadline to appeal was November 9, 2018. The plantiff did not appeal, and the
matter is resolved.

Four shareholder derivative actions have been filed in federal court, purporting to be brought on our behalf
against certain of our current and former officers and directors based on the same events alleged in the securities
class action lawsuits described above. We are named as a nominal defendant. The plaintiffs assert claims for
alleged breaches of fiduciary duties, unjust enrichment, and waste of corporate assets for the period from
February 2016 through the present and generally allege that the defendants made or caused us to make materially
false and/or misleading statements and failed to disclose material adverse facts about our business, operations,
and prospects. The plaintiffs also claim that the alleged conduct is a breach of our Code of Business Conduct
and Ethics, and that the defendants, including members of our Audit Committee, breached their fiduciary duties
by failing to ensure the adequacy of our internal controls, and by causing or allowing us to disseminate false and

145

misleading statements in our SEC filings and other disclosures. The securities class action lawsuits and the
federal derivative actions have all been related by the court and assigned to one judge. The derivative cases have
been dismissed.

Shareholder derivative actions purporting to be brought on our behalf were brought in the Superior Court of
California for the County of Santa Clara against certain of our current and former officers and directors based on
the same events alleged in the securities class action and federal derivative lawsuits described above and alleging
breaches of fiduciary duties. The state court cases have been dismissed.

Other Litigation

We are also a party to various other litigation matters and claims that arise from time to time in the ordinary

course of our business. While we believe that the ultimate outcome of such matters will not have a material
adverse effect on us, their outcomes are not determinable and negative outcomes may adversely affect our
financial position, liquidity, or results of operations.

Note 11. EQUITY INVESTMENTS

Our equity investments consist of equity method investments, equity investments with readily determinable

fair value and equity investments without readily determinable fair value.

Equity Method Investments

Huaxia CPV (Inner Mongolia) Power Co., Ltd. (‘‘CCPV’’)

In December 2012, we entered into an agreement with Tianjin Zhonghuan Semiconductor Co. Ltd., Inner
Mongolia Power Group Co. Ltd. and Hohhot Jinqiao City Development Company Co., Ltd. to form CCPV, a
jointly owned entity to manufacture and deploy our low-concentration PV (‘‘LCPV’’) concentrator technology in
Inner Mongolia and other regions in China. CCPV is based in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia. The establishment of the
entity was subject to approval of the Chinese government, which was received in the fourth quarter of fiscal
2013. In December 2013, we made a $16.4 million equity investment in CCPV, for a 25% equity ownership.

We have concluded that we are not the primary beneficiary of CCPV because, although we are obligated to

absorb losses and have the right to receive benefits, we alone do not have the power to direct the activities of
CCPV that most significantly impact its economic performance. We account for our investment in CCPV using
the equity method because we are able to exercise significant influence over CCPV due to our board position.

Diamond Energy Pty Ltd. (‘‘Diamond Energy’’)

In October 2012, we made a $3.0 million equity investment in Diamond Energy, an alternative energy

project developer and clean electricity retailer headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, in exchange for a
25% equity ownership.

We have concluded that we are not the primary beneficiary of Diamond Energy because, although we are

obligated to absorb losses and has the right to receive benefits, we alone do not have the power to direct the
activities of Diamond Energy that most significantly impact its economic performance. We accounted for our
investment in Diamond Energy using the equity method because we are able to exercise significant influence
over Diamond Energy due to our board position.

On December 21, 2018, we completed the sale of our equity interest in Diamond Energy. As a result of this
transaction, we received, after the payment of fees and expenses, merger proceeds of approximately $2.5 million
in cash and no longer directly or indirectly owns any equity interests in Diamond Energy. In connection with the
sale, we recognized a $2.2 million loss on disposal within ‘‘Other, net’’ in ‘‘Other income (expense), net’’ of our
Consolidated Statements of Operations for the year ended December 30, 2018.

8point3 Energy Partners (‘‘8point3 Group’’)

In June 2015, 8point3 Energy Partners, a joint YieldCo vehicle formed by us and First Solar, (together with

us, the ‘‘Sponsors’’) to own, operate and acquire solar energy generation assets, consummated its initial public
offering (‘‘IPO’’).

146

We concluded that we were not the primary beneficiary of the 8point3 Group or any of its individual

subsidiaries because, although the Sponsors were both obligated to absorb losses or have the right to receive
benefits, we alone did not have the power to direct the activities of the 8point3 Group that most significantly
impact its economic performance. In making this determination, we considered, among other factors, the equal
division between the Sponsors of management rights in the 8point3 Group and the corresponding equal influence
over its significant decisions, the role and influence of the independent directors on the board of directors of the
general partner of 8point3 Energy Partners, and how both Sponsors contributed to the activities that most
significantly impacted the 8point3 Group’s economic performance. We accounted for our investment in the
8point3 Group using the equity method because we determined that, notwithstanding the division of management
and ownership interests between the Sponsors, we exercised significant influence over the operations of the
8point3 Group.

During the year ended December 30, 2018, we received $16.2 million in dividend distributions from the

8point3 Group. During the year ended December 31, 2017, we received $30.1 million in dividend distributions
from the 8point3 Group.

Under previous guidance for leasing transactions, we treated the portion of the portfolio of residential lease
assets originally sold to the 8point3 Group in connection with the IPO transaction, composed of operating leases
and unguaranteed sales-type lease residual values, as a borrowing and reflected the cash proceeds attributable to
this portion of the residential lease assets as liabilities recorded within ‘‘Accrued liabilities’’ and ‘‘Other
long-term liabilities’’ in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. Upon adoption of ASC 606 on January 1, 2018, we
deconsolidated the portfolio of residential leases and as a result, the operating leases and the unguaranteed
sales-type lease residual values that were sold to the 8point3 Group.

On June 19, 2018, we completed the sale of our equity interest in the 8point3 Group. As a result of this

transaction, we received, after the payment of fees and expenses, merger proceeds of approximately
$359.9 million in cash and no longer directly or indirectly owns any equity interests in the 8point3 Group. In
connection with the sale, we recognized a $34.4 million gain within ‘‘Other, net’’ in ‘‘Other income (expense),
net’’ of our Consolidated Statements of Operations for the year ended December 30, 2018.

Dongfang Huansheng Photovoltaic (Jiangsu) Co., Ltd. (‘‘Dongfang’’)

In March 2016, we entered into an agreement with Dongfang Electric Corporation and Tianjin Zhonghuan
Semiconductor Co., Ltd. to form Dongfang Huansheng Photovoltaic (Jiangsu) Co., Ltd., a jointly owned solar
cell manufacturing facility to manufacture our P-Series modules in China. The joint venture is based in Yixing
City in Jiangsu Province, China. In March 2016, we made an initial $9.2 million investment for a 15% equity
ownership interest in the joint venture, which was accounted for under the cost method. In February 2017, we
invested an additional $9.0 million which included an investment of $7.7 million and reinvested dividends of
$1.3 million, bringing our equity ownership to 20% of the joint venture. In February and April 2018, we invested
an additional $6.3 million and $7.0 million (net of $0.7 million of dividends reinvested), respectively,
maintaining our equity ownership at 20% of the joint venture.

We have concluded that we are not the primary beneficiary of the joint venture because, although we are

obligated to absorb losses and has the right to receive benefits, we alone do not have the power to direct the
activities of the joint venture that most significantly impact its economic performance. We account for our
investment in the joint venture using the equity method because we are able to exercise significant influence over
the joint venture due to our board position.

SunStrong Capital Holdings, LLC (‘‘Sunstrong’’)

On November 5, 2018, HA SunStrong Capital LLC (‘‘HA SunStrong Parent’’), a subsidiary of Hannon
Armstrong, acquired 49% equity interests in SunStrong, a previously wholly owned subsidiary of the company
for cash proceeds of $10 million. See ‘‘Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestitures’’ for additional details.

We have concluded that we are not the primary beneficiary of SunStrong because although we are obligated
to absorb losses and have the right to receive benefits, we alone do not have the power to direct the activities of
SunStrong that most significantly impact its economic performance. We account for our investment in the joint
venture using the equity method because we are able to exercise significant influence over the joint venture due
to our board position. See ‘‘Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestitures,’’ ‘‘Note 6. Balance Sheet
Components,’’ Note 7. Leasing,’’ and ‘‘Note 12. Debt and Credit Sources’’ for additional details.

147

Equity Investments with Readily Determinable Fair Value

Enphase Energy, Inc.

In August 2018, we completed the sale to Enphase of certain assets and intellectual property related to the
production of microinverters and received, as a portion of the total consideration in the transaction, 7.5 million
shares of Enphase common stock, roughly equivalent to a 7.7% equity ownership interest in Enphase. We also
received the right to appoint one person to the Enphase board of directors, subject to certain conditions.

We have concluded that we are not the primary beneficiary of Enphase because, although we are obligated
to absorb losses and have the right to receive benefits, we alone do not have the power to direct the activities of
Enphase that most significantly impact its economic performance. We account for our investment in Enphase at
fair value through net income. See ‘‘Note 4. Business Acquisitions and Divestitures’’ for additional details.

Equity Investments without Readily Determinable Fair Value

Tendril Networks, Inc. (‘‘Tendril’’)

In November 2014, we invested in Tendril by purchasing $20.0 million of its preferred stock. In the first

half of fiscal 2017, we invested an additional $3.0 million in Tendril by purchasing $1.5 million of its preferred
stock in February 2017 and then again in April 2017. Our total investment in Tendril constitutes a minority stake
and is accounted for under the measurement alternative method because the preferred stock is deemed not to be
in-substance common stock. In connection with the initial investment, we acquired warrants to purchase up to
approximately 14 million shares of Tendril common stock exercisable through November 23, 2024. The number
of shares of Tendril common stock that may be purchased pursuant to the warrants is subject to our and Tendril’s
achievement of certain financial and operational milestones and other conditions.

In connection with the initial investment in Tendril, we also entered into commercial agreements with
Tendril under a master services agreement and related statements of work. Under these commercial agreements,
Tendril will use up to $13.0 million of our initial investment to develop, jointly with us, certain solar software
solution products. Our reassessment of our total investment in Tendril concluded that our investment constituted
a minority stake and remained accounted for under the measurement alternative method.

On November 30, 2018, we completed the sale of our equity interest in Tendril. As a result of this

transaction, we received, after the payment of fees and expenses, sale proceeds of approximately $28.8 million in
cash and no longer directly or indirectly owns any equity interests in Tendril. In connection with the sale, we
recognized a $5.8 million gain within ‘‘Other, net’’ in ‘‘Other income (expense), net’’ of our Consolidated
Statements of Operations for the year ended December 30, 2018.

Equity Investments in Project Entities

We have from time to time maintained noncontrolling interests in our development project entities, which

may be accounted for as either equity method investments or measurement alternative method securities,
depending on whether we exercise significant influence over the investee. Our involvement in these entities
primarily takes two forms, (i) we may take a noncontrolling interest in an early-stage project and maintain that
investment over the development cycle, often in situations in which our products are also sold to the entity under
separate agreements, or (ii) we may retain a noncontrolling interest in a development project after a controlling
interest is sold to a third party. In either form, we may maintain our investment for all or part of the operational
life of the project or may seek to subsequently dispose of our investment. For sales of solar power systems
where we maintain an equity interest in the project sold to the customer, we recognize all of the consideration
received, including the fair value of the noncontrolling interest we obtained, as revenue and defer any profits
associated with our retained equity stake through ‘‘Equity in earnings (losses) of unconsolidated investees.’’

During fiscal 2018, we sold our remaining noncontrolling interests in the Boulder Solar I project, which was
previously accounted for as equity method investment, resulting in a gain of $15.6 million within ‘‘Other income
(expense), net’’ of our Consolidated Statements of Operations.

148

Our share of earnings (losses) from equity investments accounted for under the equity method is reflected as

‘‘Equity in earnings (losses) of unconsolidated investees’’ in our Consolidated Statements of Operations.
Unrealized gains and losses on equity investments are reflected as ‘‘Other, net’’ under other income (expense),
net of our Consolidated Statements of Operations. The carrying value of our equity investments, classified as
‘‘Other long-term assets’’ in our Consolidated Balance Sheets, are as follows:

(In thousands)

Equity method investments:

Dongfang . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SunStrong Capital Holdings, LLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
8point3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Diamond Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Project entities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total equity method investments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Equity investments with readily determinable fair value:

Enphase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total equity investments with readily determinable fair value . . . . . .

Equity investments without readily determinable fair value:

Tendril . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Project entities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other equity investments without readily determinable fair value . . . . .

Total equity investments without readily determinable fair value . . .

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

$32,784
8,831
—
—
2,044

43,659

36,225

36,225

—
2,951
5,859

8,810

$ 24,562
—
382,678
4,256
38,504

450,000

—

—

22,922
7,059
5,859

35,840

Total equity investments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$88,694

$485,840

Related-Party Transactions with Investees

Related-party transactions with investees are as follows:

(In thousands)

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

Accounts receivable. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accounts payable. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accrued liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contract liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other long-term liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$19,062
7,982
22,364
—
—

$ 1,275
3,764
4,161
175
29,245

(In thousands)

Fiscal Year Ended
2017

2016

2018

Payments made to investees for products/services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Revenues and fees received from investees for products/services1 . . . . . . . . . . .

$80,150
9,717

$ — $337,831
317,314

31,459

1

Includes a portion of proceeds received from tax equity investors in connection with 8point3 Energy Partners transactions.

149

Note 12. DEBT AND CREDIT SOURCES

The following table summarizes our outstanding debt on our Consolidated Balance Sheets:

(In thousands)

Convertible debt:

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

Face
Value

Short-term Long-term

Total

Face
Value

Short-term Long-term

Total

4.00% debentures due 2023 . . . $425,000
400,000
0.875% debentures due 2021 . .
—
0.75% debentures due 2018 . . .
CEDA loan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
30,000
Non-recourse financing and other
debt1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

49,073

$ — $419,958
— 398,398
—
—
29,063
—

$419,958 $ 425,000 $
398,398

400,000
— 300,000
30,000

29,063

— $ 418,715 $ 418,715
397,739
— 397,739
— 299,685
28,538

28,538

299,685
—

39,500

9,273

48,773

466,766

57,131

399,134

456,265

$904,073

$39,500

$856,692

$896,192 $1,621,766 $356,816 $1,244,126 $1,600,942

1

Other debt excludes payments related to capital leases, which are disclosed in ‘‘Note 10. Commitments and Contingencies.’’

As of December 30, 2018, the aggregate future contractual maturities of our outstanding debt, at face value,

were as follows:

(In thousands)

Fiscal 2019

Fiscal 2020

Fiscal 2021

Fiscal 2022

Fiscal 2023

Thereafter

Total

Aggregate future
maturities of
outstanding debt .

Convertible Debt

$39,679

$3,326

$400,659

$694

$425,732

$33,983

$904,073

The following table summarizes our outstanding convertible debt:

(In thousands)

Convertible debt: . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4.00% debentures due 2023 . . .
0.875% debentures due 2021 . .
0.75% debentures due 2018 . . .

Carrying
Value

December 30, 2018
Face
Value

Fair
Value1

Carrying
Value

December 31, 2017
Face
Value

Fair
Value1

$419,958
398,398
—

$425,000
400,000
—

$341,968
306,904
—

$ 418,715
397,739
299,685

$ 425,000
400,000
300,000

$368,399
315,132
299,313

$818,356

$825,000

$648,872

$1,116,139

$1,125,000

$982,844

1

The fair value of the convertible debt was determined using Level 2 inputs based on quarterly market prices as reported by an
independent pricing source.

Our outstanding convertible debentures are senior, unsecured obligations ranking equally with all of our

existing and future senior unsecured indebtedness.

4.00% Debentures Due 2023

In December 2015, we issued $425.0 million in principal amount of our 4.00% debentures due 2023.
Interest is payable semi-annually, beginning on July 15, 2016. Holders may exercise their right to convert the
debentures at any time into shares of our common stock at an initial conversion price approximately equal to
$30.53 per share, subject to adjustment in certain circumstances. If not earlier repurchased or converted, the
4.00% debentures due 2023 mature on January 15, 2023.

0.875% Debentures Due 2021

In June 2014, we issued $400.0 million in principal amount of our 0.875% debentures due 2021. Interest is

payable semi-annually, beginning on December 1, 2014. Holders may exercise their right to convert the
debentures at any time into shares of our common stock at an initial conversion price approximately equal to
$48.76 per share, subject to adjustment in certain circumstances. If not earlier repurchased or converted, the
0.875% debentures due 2021 mature on June 1, 2021.

150

0.75% Debentures Due 2018

In May 2013, we issued $300.0 million in principal amount of our 0.75% debentures due 2018. Interest is
payable semi-annually, beginning on December 1, 2013. Holders were able to exercise their right to convert the
debentures at any time into shares of our common stock at an initial conversion price approximately equal to
$24.95 per share, subject to adjustment in certain circumstances. If not earlier repurchased or converted, the
0.75% debentures due 2018 matured on June 1, 2018. The 0.75% debentures due 2018 were redeemed at
maturity on June 1, 2018 for cash with proceeds from the Term Credit Agreement. On June 19, 2018, we
completed the sale of our equity interest in the 8point3 Group, the proceeds of which were used to repay the
debentures under the Term Credit Agreement.

Other Debt and Credit Sources

Mortgage Loan Agreement with IFC

In May 2010, we entered into a mortgage loan agreement with IFC. Under the loan agreement, we borrowed

$75.0 million and were required to repay the amount borrowed starting two years after the date of borrowing, in
10 equal semi-annual installments. We were required to pay interest of LIBOR plus 3% per annum on
outstanding borrowings; a front-end fee of 1% on the principal amount of borrowings at the time of borrowing;
and a commitment fee of 0.5% per annum on funds available for borrowing and not borrowed. We were able to
prepay all or a part of the outstanding principal, subject to a 1% prepayment premium. We had pledged certain
assets as collateral supporting our repayment obligations (see Note 6. Balance Sheet Components). As of
December 31, 2017, we had restricted cash and cash equivalents of zero related to the IFC debt service reserve,
which was the amount, as determined by IFC, equal to the aggregate principal and interest due on the next
succeeding interest payment date. On January 17, 2017, we repaid the entire outstanding balance, and the
associated interest, of the mortgage loan agreement with IFC.

Loan Agreement with California Enterprise Development Authority (‘‘CEDA’’)

In 2010, we borrowed the proceeds of the $30.0 million aggregate principal amount of CEDA’s tax-exempt

Recovery Zone Facility Revenue Bonds (SunPower Corporation - Headquarters Project) Series 2010 (the
‘‘Bonds’’) maturing April 1, 2031 under a loan agreement with CEDA. The Bonds mature on April 1, 2031, bear
interest at a fixed rate of 8.50% through maturity, and include customary covenants and other restrictions on us.
As of December 30, 2018, the fair value of the Bonds was $32.4 million, determined by using Level 2 inputs
based on quarterly market prices as reported by an independent pricing source.

Revolving Credit Facility with Credit Agricole

In July 2013, we entered into a revolving credit agreement with Credit Agricole, as administrative agent,
and certain financial institutions, under which we may borrow up to $250.0 million. On August 26, 2014, we
entered into an amendment to the revolving credit facility that, among other things, extends the maturity date of
the facility from July 3, 2016 to August 26, 2019 (the ‘‘Maturity Date’’). Amounts borrowed may be repaid and
reborrowed until the Maturity Date. On February 17, 2016, we entered into an amendment to the credit
agreement, expanding the available borrowings under the revolving credit facility to $300.0 million and adding a
$200.0 million letter of credit subfacility, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions. The revolving credit
facility includes representations, covenants, and events of default customary for financing transactions of this
type.

On June 23, 2017, we entered into an Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Agreement (the ‘‘Revolver’’)

with Credit Agricole, as administrative agent, and the other lenders party thereto, which amends and restates the
Revolving Credit Agreement dated July 3, 2013, as amended.

The Revolver was entered into in connection with the Letter Agreement, to facilitate the issuance by Total

S.A. of one or more guaranties of our payment obligations of up to $100.0 million under the Revolver. The
maturity date of the Letter Agreement and the Revolver is August 26, 2019. In consideration for the
commitments of Total S.A. pursuant to the Letter Agreement, we are required to pay a guarantor commitment fee
of 0.50% per annum for the unutilized support amount and a guaranty fee of 2.35% per annum of the Guaranty
outstanding. Available borrowings under the Revolver are $300.0 million; provided that the aggregate principal
amount of all amounts borrowed under the facility cannot exceed 95.0% of the amounts guaranteed by Total
under the Letter Agreement. Amounts borrowed may be repaid and reborrowed until the maturity date.

151

We are required to pay (a) interest on outstanding borrowings under the facility of (i) with respect to any
LIBOR rate loan, an amount equal to 0.6% plus the LIBOR rate divided by a percentage equal to one minus the
stated maximum rate of all reserves required to be maintained against ‘‘Eurocurrency liabilities’’ as specified in
Regulation D; and (ii) with respect to any alternate base rate loan, an amount equal to 0.25% plus the greater of
(1) the prime rate, (2) the Federal Funds rate plus 0.50%, and (3) the one-month LIBOR rate plus 1%; and (b) a
commitment fee of 0.06% per annum on funds available for borrowing and not borrowed. The Revolver includes
representations, covenants, and events of default customary for financing transactions of this type. As of both
December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had no outstanding borrowings under the Revolver.

2016 Letter of Credit Facility Agreements

In June 2016, we entered into a Continuing Agreement for Standby Letters of Credit and Demand

Guarantees with Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch and Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas (the ‘‘2016
Non-Guaranteed LC Facility’’) which provides for the issuance, upon our request, of letters of credit to support
our obligations in an aggregate amount not to exceed $50.0 million. The 2016 Non-Guaranteed LC Facility
terminated on June 29, 2018. In March 2018, we entered into a letter agreement in connection with the
2016 Non-Guaranteed LC Facility. Pursuant to the letter agreement, we have advised Deutsche Bank AG New
York Branch and Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas (‘‘Issuer’’), and the Issuer has acknowledged, that one
or more outstanding letters of credit or demand guarantees issued under the letter agreement may remain
outstanding, at our request, after the scheduled termination date set forth in the letter agreement. As of December
30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, letters of credit issued and outstanding under the 2016 Non-Guaranteed LC
Facility totaled $18.1 million and $30.1 million, respectively.

In June 2016, we entered into bilateral letter of credit facility agreements (the ‘‘2016 Guaranteed LC
Facilities’’) with Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ (‘‘BTMU’’), Credit Agricole, and HSBC USA Bank, National
Association (‘‘HSBC’’). Each letter of credit facility agreement provides for the issuance, upon our request, of
letters of credit by the issuing bank thereunder in order to support certain of our obligations until December 31,
2018. Payment of obligations under the 2016 Guaranteed LC Facilities is guaranteed by Total S.A. pursuant to
the Credit Support Agreement. Aggregate letter of credit amounts may be increased upon the agreement of the
respective parties but, otherwise, may not exceed $75.0 million with BTMU, $75.0 million with Credit Agricole
and $175.0 million with HSBC. Each letter of credit issued under one of the letter of credit facilities generally
must have an expiration date, subject to certain exceptions, no later than the earlier of (a) two years from
completion of the applicable project and (b) March 31, 2020.

In June 2016, in connection with the 2016 Guaranteed LC Facilities, we entered into a transfer agreement to

transfer to the 2016 Guaranteed LC Facilities all existing outstanding letters of credit issued under our letter of
credit facility agreement with Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch and Deutsche Bank Trust Company
Americas, as administrative agent, and certain financial institutions, entered into in August 2011 and amended
from time to time. In connection with the transfer of the existing outstanding letters of credit, the aggregate
commitment amount under the August 2011 letter of credit facility was permanently reduced to zero on June 29,
2016. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, letters of credit issued and outstanding under the
2016 Guaranteed LC Facilities totaled $36.3 million and $173.7 million, respectively.

September 2011 Letter of Credit Facility with Deutsche Bank and Deutsche Bank Trust Company
Americas (together, ‘‘Deutsche Bank Trust’’)

In September 2011, we entered into a letter of credit facility with Deutsche Bank Trust which provides for

the issuance, upon our request, of letters of credit to support our obligations in an aggregate amount not to
exceed $200.0 million. Each letter of credit issued under the facility is fully cash-collateralized and we have
entered into a security agreement with Deutsche Bank Trust, granting them a security interest in a cash collateral
account established for this purpose.

As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, letters of credit issued and outstanding under the
Deutsche Bank Trust facility totaled $3.0 million and $7.1 million, respectively, which were fully collateralized
with restricted cash on the Consolidated Balance Sheets.

152

Revolving Credit Facility with Mizuho Bank Ltd. (‘‘Mizuho’’) and Goldman Sachs Bank USA (‘‘Goldman
Sachs’’)

On May 4, 2016, we entered into a revolving credit facility, as amended (the ‘‘Construction Revolver’’) with

Mizuho, as administrative agent, and Goldman Sachs, under which we could borrow up to $200 million. The
Construction Revolver also included a $100 million accordion feature. On October 27, 2017, we and Mizuho
entered into an amendment to the Construction Revolver, which reduced the amount that we could borrow to up
to $50 million. On June 28, 2018, all outstanding loans under the Construction Revolver were repaid and the
facility was terminated. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the aggregate carrying value of the
Construction Revolver totaled zero and $3.2 million, respectively. As of December 30, 2018, we also had
$75.0 million in additional borrowing capacity under other limited recourse construction financing facilities.

Subordinated Mezzanine Loan with SunStrong Capital Lender LLC, an indirect subsidiary of Hannon
Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (‘‘Hannon Armstrong’’)

On August 10, 2018, SunStrong Capital Acquisition, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company
(‘‘Mezzanine Loan 1 Borrower’’), and SunStrong Capital Lender LLC, a subsidiary of Hannon Armstrong,
entered into a mezzanine loan agreement under which Mezzanine Loan 1 Borrower borrowed a subordinated,
mezzanine loan of $110.5 million (the ‘‘Mezzanine Loan 1’’) and incurred issuance costs of $1.4 million related
to the loan. On August 31, 2018, we repaid a principal amount of $2.1 million that resulted in an adjusted
Mezzanine Loan 1 balance, net of issuance costs, of $107.0 million. The divestiture of our Residential Lease
Portfolio resulted in deconsolidation of this debt. See ‘‘Note 4. Business Combinations and Divestitures’’ for
additional information.

Non-recourse Financing and Other Debt

In order to facilitate the construction, sale or ongoing operation of certain solar projects, including our
residential leasing program, we regularly obtain project-level financing. These financings are secured either by
the assets of the specific project being financed or by our equity in the relevant project entity and the lenders do
not have recourse to our general assets for repayment of such debt obligations, and hence the financings are
referred to as non-recourse. Non-recourse financing is typically in the form of loans from third-party financial
institutions, but also takes other forms, including partnership flip structures, sale-leaseback arrangements, or other
forms commonly used in the solar or similar industries. We may seek non-recourse financing covering solely the
construction period of the solar project or may also seek financing covering part or all of the operating life of the
solar project. We classify non-recourse financings in our Consolidated Balance Sheets in accordance with their
terms; however, in certain circumstances, we may repay or refinance these financings prior to stated maturity
dates in connection with the sale of the related project or similar such circumstances. In addition, in certain
instances, the customer may assume the loans at the time that the project entity is sold to the customer. In these
instances, subsequent debt assumption is reflected as a financing outflow and operating inflow in our
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows to reflect the substance of the assumption as a facilitation of customer
financing from a third party.

The following presents a summary of our non-recourse financing arrangements, including arrangements that

are not classified as debt:

(In thousands)

Residential Lease Program:

Bridge loans
Long-term loans

Tax equity partnership flip

facilities

Aggregate Carrying Value1
December 30, 2018 December 31, 2017

Balance Sheet Classification

$ —
—

$ 17,068
356,622

58,810

119,415

Short-term debt and Long-term debt
Short-term debt and Long-term debt
Redeemable non-controlling interests
in subsidiaries and Non-controlling
interests in subsidiaries

153

(In thousands)

Power Plant and Commercial

Projects:
Boulder I credit facility
Construction Revolver
Arizona loan

Aggregate Carrying Value1
December 30, 2018 December 31, 2017

Balance Sheet Classification

—
—
6,650

28,168
3,240
7,161

Short-term debt and Long-term debt
Short-term debt and Long-term debt
Short-term debt and Long-term debt

1

Based on the nature of the debt arrangements included in the table above, and our intention to fully repay or transfer the obligations at
their face values plus any applicable interest, we believe their carrying value materially approximates fair value, which is categorized
within Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy.

For our residential lease program, non-recourse financing is typically accomplished by aggregating an
agreed-upon volume of solar power systems and leases with residential customers into a specific project entity.
We have entered into the following non-recourse financings with respect to our residential lease program:

•

In fiscal 2016, we entered into bridge loans to finance solar power systems and leases under our
residential lease program. The loans are repaid over terms ranging from two to seven years. Some loans
may be prepaid without penalties at our option at any time, while other loans may be prepaid, subject
to a prepayment fee, after one year. During the fiscal 2018 and 2017, we had net repayments of
$1.6 million and $10.3 million, respectively, in connection with these loans. As of December 30, 2018
and December 31, 2017, the aggregate carrying amount of these loans, presented within ‘‘Short-term
debt’’ and ‘‘Long-term debt’’ on our Consolidated Balance Sheets, was zero and $17.1 million,
respectively. The decrease in the balance over the prior period can be attributed to the divestiture of our
Residential Lease Portfolio and the subsequent assumption of this debt by SunStrong. See ‘‘Note 4.
Business Combinations and Divestitures’’ for additional information.

• We enter into long-term loans to finance solar power systems and leases under our residential lease
program. The loans are repaid over their terms of between 4 and 25 years. During fiscal 2018 and
2017, we had net proceeds of $176.6 million and $72.4 million, respectively, in connection with these
loans. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the aggregate carrying amount of these loans,
presented within ‘‘Short-term debt’’ and ‘‘Long-term debt’’ on our Consolidated Balance Sheets, was
zero and $356.6 million, respectively. The decrease in the balance over the prior period can be
attributed to the divestiture of our Residential Lease Portfolio. See ‘‘Note 4. Business Combinations
and Divestitures’’ for additional information.

• We also enter into facilities with third-party tax equity investors under which the investors invest in a
structure known as a ‘‘partnership flip.’’ We hold controlling interests in these less-than-wholly-owned
entities and therefore fully consolidates these entities. We account for the portion of net assets in the
consolidated entities attributable to the investors as noncontrolling interests in our consolidated
financial statements. Noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries that are redeemable at the option of the
noncontrolling interest holder are classified accordingly as redeemable between liabilities and equity on
our Consolidated Balance Sheets. During fiscal 2018 and 2017, we had net contributions of
$129.3 million and $178.4 million, respectively, under these facilities and attributed losses of
$106.4 million and $91.2 million, respectively, to the noncontrolling interests corresponding principally
to certain assets, including tax credits, which were allocated to the noncontrolling interests during the
periods. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the aggregate carrying amount of these
facilities, presented within ‘‘Redeemable noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries’’ and ‘‘Noncontrolling
interests in subsidiaries’’ on our Consolidated Balance Sheets, was $58.8 million and $119.4 million,
respectively.

154

For our legacy power plant and commercial solar projects, non-recourse financing is typically accomplished
using an individual solar power system or a series of solar power systems with a common end customer, in each
case owned by a specific project entity. We have entered into the following non-recourse financings with respect
to our legacy power plant and commercial projects:

•

•

•

•

•

In fiscal 2017, we entered into a short-term credit facility to finance the 70 MW utility-scale Gala
power plant project in Oregon. In the third quarter of fiscal 2017, we repaid the full outstanding
amount of $106.0 million in connection with the credit facility.

In fiscal 2016, we entered into the Construction Revolver credit facility to support the construction of
our commercial and small-scale utility projects in the United States. During fiscal 2017, we made net
repayments of $9.1 million in connection with the facility. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31,
2017, the aggregate carrying amount of the Construction Revolver, presented in ‘‘Long-term debt’’ on
our Consolidated Balance Sheets, was zero and $3.2 million, respectively.

In fiscal 2016, we entered into a long-term credit facility to finance the 125 MW utility-scale Boulder
power plant project in Nevada. In February of 2018, we sold our equity interest in Boulder Solar I
where the buyer repaid the remaining principal loan balance of $27.3 million upon the sale of the
project. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the aggregate carrying amount of this
facility, presented within ‘‘Short-term debt’’ and ‘‘Long-term debt’’ on our Consolidated Balance
Sheets, was zero and $28.2 million, respectively.

In fiscal 2016, we entered into a long-term credit facility to finance the 111 MW utility-scale El
Pelicano power plant project in Chile. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, we sold El Pelicano, and the
buyer assumed the full outstanding debt balance of $196.1 million upon the sale of the project.

In fiscal 2013, we entered into a long-term loan agreement to finance a 5.4 MW utility and power plant
operating in Arizona. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the aggregate carrying amount
under this loan, presented within ‘‘Short-term debt’’ and ‘‘Long-term debt’’ on our Consolidated
Balance Sheets, was $6.7 million and $7.2 million, respectively.

Other debt is further composed of non-recourse project loans in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, which
are scheduled to mature through 2028, and of limited recourse construction financing loans made in the ordinary
course of business to individual projects in the United States, which are scheduled to mature through 2021.

See ‘‘Note 7. Leasing’’ for discussion of our sale-leaseback arrangements accounted for under the financing

method.

Note 13. DERIVATIVE FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

The following tables present information about our hedge instruments measured at fair value on a recurring
basis as of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, all of which utilize Level 2 inputs under the fair value
hierarchy:
(In thousands)
Assets:

Balance Sheet Classification

December 30, 2018 December 31, 2017

Derivatives designated as hedging

instruments:
Foreign currency forward exchange
contracts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Derivatives not designated as hedging

instruments:
Foreign currency forward exchange
contracts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Prepaid expenses and other current
assets

Prepaid expenses and other current
assets

$ —
$ —

$729
$729

$
$

61
61

$2,518
$2,518

155

(In thousands)

Liabilities:

Balance Sheet Classification

December 30, 2018 December 31, 2017

Derivatives designated as hedging

instruments: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interest rate contracts . . . . . . . . . . . . Other long-term liabilities

Derivatives not designated as hedging

instruments:
Foreign currency forward exchange

contracts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Accrued liabilities

Interest rate contracts . . . . . . . . . . . . Other long-term liabilities

$ 152
$ 152

$ 715
$ 715

$1,161
—
$1,161

$1,452
459
$1,911

December 30, 2018

Gross Amounts Not Offset in the
Consolidated Balance Sheets, but
Have Rights to Offset

(In thousands)

Gross
Amounts
Recognized

Gross
Amounts
Offset

Net Amounts
Presented

Financial
Instruments

Cash

Collateral Net Amounts

Derivative assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Derivative liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . .

$ 729
$1,313

$—
—

$ 729
1,313

$729
729

$—
—

$ —
584

December 31, 2017

Gross Amounts Not Offset in the
Consolidated Balance Sheets, but
Have Rights to Offset

(In thousands)

Gross
Amounts
Recognized

Gross
Amounts
Offset

Net Amounts
Presented

Financial
Instruments

Cash

Collateral Net Amounts

Derivative assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Derivative liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . .

$2,579
2,626

$—
—

$2,579
2,626

$603
603

$—
—

$1,976
2,023

The following table summarizes the pre-tax amount of unrealized gain or loss recognized in ‘‘Accumulated

other comprehensive income’’ (‘‘OCI’’) in ‘‘Stockholders’ equity’’ on our Consolidated Balance Sheets:

(In thousands)

Derivatives designated as cash flow hedges:

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

Gain (loss) in OCI at the beginning of the period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$(561)

$ 1,203

$ 5,942

Unrealized gain (loss) recognized in OCI (effective portion). . . . . . . . . . . .
Less: Gain reclassified from OCI to revenue (effective portion of FX

414

(905)

2,626

trades) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(35)

(1,137)

(7,587)

Less: Loss reclassified from OCI to interest expense (effective portion

of interest rate swaps). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Net gain (loss) on derivatives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

18

397

278

222

(1,764)

(4,739)

Gain (loss) in OCI at the end of the period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$(164)

$ (561)

$ 1,203

156

The following table summarizes the amount of gain or loss recognized in ‘‘Other, net’’ on our Consolidated

Statements of Operations in the years ended December 30, 2018, December 31, 2017 and January 1, 2017:

(In thousands)

Derivatives designated as cash flow hedges: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gain (loss) recognized in ‘‘Other, net’’ on derivatives (ineffective portion

and amount excluded from effectiveness testing) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gain (loss) recognized in ‘‘Other, net’’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

$ — $ 254

$(1,069)

$(2,904)

$1,635

$(6,964)

Foreign Currency Exchange Risk

Designated Derivatives Hedging Cash Flow Exposure

Our cash flow exposure primarily relates to anticipated third-party foreign currency revenues and expenses

and interest rate fluctuations. To protect financial performance, we enter into foreign currency forward and option
contracts designated as cash flow hedges to hedge certain forecasted revenue transactions denominated in
currencies other than their functional currencies.

As of December 30, 2018, we had no designated outstanding cash flow hedge forward contracts. As of

December 31, 2017, we had designated outstanding cash flow hedge forward contracts with an aggregate
notional value of $2.1 million. We designate either gross external or intercompany revenue up to our net
economic exposure. These derivatives have a maturity of a month or less and consist of foreign currency forward
contracts. The effective portion of these cash flow hedges is reclassified into revenue when third-party revenue is
recognized in our Consolidated Statements of Operations.

Non-Designated Derivatives Hedging Transaction Exposure

Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments consist of forward and option contracts used to hedge

re-measurement of foreign currency denominated monetary assets and liabilities primarily for intercompany
transactions, receivables from customers, and payables to third parties. Changes in exchange rates between our
subsidiaries’ functional currencies and the currencies in which these assets and liabilities are denominated can
create fluctuations in our reported consolidated financial position, results of operations and cash flows. As of
December 30, 2018, to hedge balance sheet exposure, we held forward contracts with an aggregate notional value
of $11.4 million. The maturity dates of these contracts are in January 2019. As of December 31, 2017, to hedge
balance sheet exposure, we held forward contracts with an aggregate notional value of $8.2 million. The maturity
dates of these contracts ranged from January 2, 2018 to January 30, 2018.

Interest Rate Risk

We also enter into interest rate swap agreements to reduce the impact of changes in interest rates on our

project specific non-recourse floating rate debt. As of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had
interest rate swap agreements designated as cash flow hedges with aggregate notional values of $6.7 million and
$58.1 million, respectively, and interest rate swap agreements not designated as cash flow hedges with aggregate
notional values of zero and $21.1 million, respectively. These swap agreements allow us to effectively convert
floating-rate payments into fixed rate payments periodically over the life of the agreements. These derivatives
have a maturity of more than 12 months. The effective portion of these swap agreements designated as cash flow
hedges is reclassified into interest expense when the hedged transactions are recognized in our Consolidated
Statements of Operations. We analyze our designated interest rate swaps quarterly to determine if the hedge
transaction remains effective or ineffective. We may discontinue hedge accounting for interest rate swaps
prospectively if certain criteria are no longer met, the interest rate swap is terminated or exercised, or if we elect
to remove the cash flow hedge designation. If hedge accounting is discontinued, and the forecasted hedged
transaction is considered possible to occur, the previously recognized gain or loss on the interest rate swaps will
remain in accumulated other comprehensive loss and will be reclassified into earnings during the same period the
forecasted hedged transaction affects earnings or is otherwise deemed improbable to occur. All changes in the
fair value of non-designated interest rate swap agreements are recognized immediately in current period earnings.

157

Credit Risk

Our option and forward contracts do not contain any credit-risk-related contingent features. We are exposed

to credit losses in the event of nonperformance by the counterparties to these option and forward contracts. We
enter into derivative contracts with high-quality financial institutions and limit the amount of credit exposure to
any single counterparty. In addition, we continuously evaluate the credit standing of our counterparties.

Note 14. INCOME TAXES

On December 22, 2017, the U.S. enacted the Tax Act which significantly changed U.S. tax law. The Tax Act

lowered our U.S. statutory federal income tax rate from 35% to 21% effective January 1, 2018, while also
imposing a deemed repatriation tax on deferred foreign income. The Tax Act also created a new minimum ‘‘base
erosion and anti-abuse tax’’ on certain foreign payments made by a U.S. parent company, and the ‘‘global
intangible low-taxed income’’ rules which tax foreign subsidiary income earned over a 10% rate of routine return
on tangible business assets.

In December 2017, the SEC staff issued Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118, Income Tax Accounting

Implications of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which allows the Company to record provisional amounts for the Tax
Act during a measurement period not to extend beyond one year of the enactment date. As a result, in 2017, we
have previously provided a reasonable estimate of the effects of the Tax Act in our financial statements. During
the quarter ended December 30, 2018, we completed our analysis based on legislative updates currently available
and reported the changes to the provisional amounts previously recorded which did not impact our income tax
provision. We also confirmed that the Tax Act does not impact our expectations of actual cash payments for
income taxes in the foreseeable future.

In the year ended December 30, 2018, our income tax provision of $1.0 million on a loss before income

taxes and equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees of $898.7 million was primarily due to the related tax
expense in foreign jurisdictions that were profitable, offset by tax benefit related to release of valuation
allowance in a foreign jurisdiction and release of tax reserve due to lapse of statutes of limitation. The income
tax benefit of $3.9 million in the year ended December 31, 2017 on a loss before income taxes and equity in
earnings of unconsolidated investees of $1,200.8 million, was primarily due to the related tax effects of the
carryback of fiscal 2016 net operating losses to fiscal 2015 domestic tax returns, partially offset by tax expense
in profitable jurisdictions.

The geographic distribution of income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes and equity
earnings (losses) of unconsolidated investees and the components of provision for income taxes are summarized
below:

(In thousands)

Geographic distribution of income (loss) from continuing operations before
income taxes and equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees: . . . . . . .

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

U.S. income (loss) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $(778,316) $(1,242,000) $(660,029)
131,637
Non-U.S. income (loss) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(120,355)

41,250

Income (loss) before income taxes and equity in earnings (loss) of

unconsolidated investees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $(898,671) $(1,200,750) $(528,392)

Provision for income taxes: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Current tax benefit (expense). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Federal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $
State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Foreign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(1,155) $
(553)
(4,100)

6,816 $
6,575
(12,074)

(6,842)
9,254
(19,073)

Total current tax expense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(5,808)

1,317

(16,661)

158

(In thousands)

Deferred tax benefit (expense)

Federal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Foreign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total deferred tax benefit (expense) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2018

—
—
4,798

4,798

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

3,286
1,450
1,177

2,627

6,819
(762)

9,343

Benefit from (provision for) income taxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$(1,010)

$3,944

$(7,318)

The benefit from (provision for) for income taxes differs from the amounts obtained by applying the

statutory U.S. federal tax rate to income before taxes as shown below:

(In thousands)

Statutory rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tax benefit (expense) at U.S. statutory rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Foreign rate differential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
State income taxes, net of benefit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Return to provision adjustments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tax credits (investment tax credit and other) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Change in valuation allowance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Unrecognized tax benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Non-controlling interest income . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Global intangible low-taxed income (‘‘GILTI’’). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Goodwill impairment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Intercompany profit deferral . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Effects of tax reform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2018

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

21%

35%

35%

$ 420,263
$ 188,721
6,178
(28,376)
(450)
(450)
—
—
8,132
4,727
(143,804)
(105,363)
2,430
2,345
17,705
(22,763)
—
(36,455)
—
—
—
—
— (302,899)
(3,611)

(3,396)

$ 184,891
24,932
(329)
10,784
6,396
(178,231)
(42,697)
17,183
—
(20,236)
(4,933)
—
(5,078)

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$

(1,010) $

3,944

$

(7,318)

(In thousands)

Deferred tax assets: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net operating loss carryforwards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tax credit carryforwards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Reserves and accruals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Stock-based compensation stock deductions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Basis difference on third-party project sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total deferred tax assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Valuation allowance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total deferred tax assets, net of valuation allowance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Deferred tax liabilities: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Outside basis difference on investment in 8point3 Energy Partners. . . .
Other intangible assets and accruals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fixed asset basis difference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total deferred tax liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As of

December 30, 2018

December 31, 2017

$ 225,489
55,527
241,194
9,316
50,648
2,081

584,255
(404,923)

179,332

—
—
(151,192)
(14,882)

(166,074)

$ 160,778
57,072
194,566
11,160
242,290
2,410

668,276
(448,723)

219,553

(53,460)
(8,257)
(140,939)
(8,252)

(210,908)

Net deferred tax asset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$ 13,258

$

8,645

159

As of December 30, 2018, we had federal net operating loss carryforwards of $779.9 million for tax

purposes; of which, $81.6 million was generated in fiscal year 2018 and can be carried forward indefinitely
under the Tax Cuts and Job Acts of 2017 (‘‘The Tax Act’’). The remaining federal net operating loss carry
forward of $698.3 million, which were generated prior to 2018, will expire at various dates from 2031 to 2037.
As of December 30, 2018, we had California state net operating loss carryforwards of approximately
$777.7 million for tax purposes, of which $5.2 million relate to debt issuance and will benefit equity when
realized. These California net operating loss carryforwards will expire at various dates from 2029 to 2038. We
also had credit carryforwards of approximately $73.9 million for federal tax purposes, of which $19.2 million
relate to debt issuance and will benefit equity when realized. We had California credit carryforwards of
$9.0 million for state tax purposes, of which $4.7 million relate to debt issuance and will benefit equity when
realized. These federal credit carryforwards will expire at various dates from 2019 to 2038, and the California
credit carryforwards do not expire. Our ability to utilize a portion of the net operating loss and credit
carryforwards is dependent upon our being able to generate taxable income in future periods or being able to
carryback net operating losses to prior year tax returns. Our ability to utilize net operating losses may be limited
due to restrictions imposed on utilization of net operating loss and credit carryforwards under federal and state
laws upon a change in ownership.

We are subject to tax holidays in the Philippines where we manufacture our solar power products. Our
current income tax holidays were granted as manufacturing lines were placed in service. Tax holidays in the
Philippines reduce our tax rate to 0% from 30% (through July 2019). Tax savings associated with the Philippines
tax holidays were approximately $3.4 million, $5.6 million and $10.0 million in fiscal years 2018, 2017 and
2016, respectively, which provided a diluted net income (loss) per share benefit of $0.02, $0.04 and $0.07,
respectively.

We qualify for the auxiliary company status in Switzerland where we sell our solar power products. The
auxiliary company status entitles us to a reduced tax rate of 11.5% in Switzerland from approximately 24.2%.
Tax savings associated with this ruling were approximately $1.8 million, $2.4 million and $1.9 million in fiscal
years 2018, 2017 and 2016, respectively, which provided a diluted net income (loss) per share benefit of $0.01,
$0.02 and $0.01, respectively.

We are subject to tax holidays in Malaysia where we manufacture our solar power products. Our current tax

holidays in Malaysia were granted to its former joint venture AUOSP (now a wholly-owned subsidiary). Tax
holidays in Malaysia reduce our tax rate to 0% from 24%. Tax savings associated with the Malaysia tax holiday
were approximately $7.6 million, $6.8 million, and $2.0 million in fiscal 2018, 2017, and 2016, respectively,
which provided a diluted net income (loss) per share benefit of $0.05, $0.05, and $0.01, respectively.

Valuation Allowance

Our valuation allowance is related to deferred tax assets in the United States, Malta, South Africa and Spain

and was determined by assessing both positive and negative evidence. When determining whether it is more
likely than not that deferred assets are recoverable, with such assessment being required on a jurisdiction by
jurisdiction basis, we believe that sufficient uncertainty exists with regard to the realizability of these assets such
that a valuation allowance is necessary. Factors considered in providing a valuation allowance include the lack of
a significant history of consistent profits, the lack of consistent profitability in the solar industry, the limited
capacity of carrybacks to realize these assets, and other factors. Based on the absence of sufficient positive
objective evidence, we are unable to assert that it is more likely than not that we will generate sufficient taxable
income to realize net deferred tax assets aside from the U.S. net operating losses that can be carried back to prior
year tax returns. Should we achieve a certain level of profitability in the future, we may be in a position to
reverse the valuation allowance which would result in a non-cash income statement benefit. The change in
valuation allowance for fiscal 2018, 2017 and 2016 was $43.8 million, $151.2 million and $214.2 million,
respectively.

Unrecognized Tax Benefits

Current accounting guidance contains a two-step approach to recognizing and measuring uncertain tax
positions. The first step is to evaluate the tax position for recognition by determining if the weight of available
evidence indicates that it is more likely than not that the position will be sustained on audit, including resolution
of related appeals or litigation processes, if any. The second step is to measure the tax benefit as the largest
amount that is more than 50% likely of being realized upon ultimate settlement..

160

A reconciliation of the beginning and ending amounts of unrecognized tax benefits during fiscal 2018, 2017,

and 2016 is as follows:

(In thousands)

Balance, beginning of year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Additions for tax positions related to the current year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Additions for tax positions from prior years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Reductions for tax positions from prior years/statute of limitations

2018

$105,959
2,404
451

Fiscal Year
2017

$ 82,253
2,478
22,151

2016

$41,058
35,768
7,322

expirations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Foreign exchange (gain) loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(2,468)
(2,462)

(1,460)
537

(2,063)
168

Balance at the end of the period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$103,884

$105,959

$82,253

Included in the unrecognized tax benefits at fiscal 2018 and 2017 is $14.7 million and $17.6 million,
respectively, that if recognized, would result in a reduction of our effective tax rate. The amounts differ from the
long-term liability recorded of $16.8 million and $19.4 million as of fiscal 2018 and 2017, respectively, due to
accrued interest and penalties. Certain components of the unrecognized tax benefits are recorded against deferred
tax asset balances.

We believe that events that could occur in the next 12 months and cause a change in unrecognized tax

benefits include, but are not limited to, the following:

•

•

commencement, continuation or completion of examinations of our tax returns by the U.S. or foreign
taxing authorities; and

expiration of statutes of limitation on our tax returns.

The calculation of unrecognized tax benefits involves dealing with uncertainties in the application of
complex global tax regulations. Uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the impact of legislative, regulatory
and judicial developments, transfer pricing and the application of withholding taxes. We regularly assess our tax
positions in light of legislative, bilateral tax treaty, regulatory and judicial developments in the countries in which
we do business. We determined that an estimate of the range of reasonably possible change in the amounts of
unrecognized tax benefits within the next 12 months cannot be made.

Classification of Interests and Penalties

We accrue interest and penalties on tax contingencies which are classified as ‘‘Provision for income taxes’’

in our Consolidated Statements of Operations. Accrued interest as of December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017
was approximately $2.1 million and $1.8 million, respectively. Accrued penalties were not material for any of the
periods presented.

Tax Years and Examination

We file tax returns in each jurisdiction in which we are registered to do business. In the United States and
many of the state jurisdictions, and in many foreign countries in which we file tax returns, a statute of limitations
period exists. After a statute of limitations period expires, the respective tax authorities may no longer assess
additional income tax for the expired period. Similarly, we are no longer eligible to file claims for refund for any
tax that we may have overpaid. The following table summarizes our major tax jurisdictions and the tax years that
remain subject to examination by these jurisdictions as of December 30, 2018:

Tax Jurisdictions

United States
California
Switzerland
Philippines
France
Italy

Tax Years

2010 and onward
2011 and onward
2013 and onward
2009 and onward
2015 and onward
2014 and onward

161

Additionally, certain pre-2010 U.S. corporate tax returns and pre-2011 California tax returns are not open for

assessment but the tax authorities can adjust net operating loss and credit carryovers that were generated.

We are under tax examinations in various jurisdictions. We do not expect the examinations to result in a
material assessment outside of existing reserves. If a material assessment in excess of current reserves results, the
amount that the assessment exceeds current reserves will be a current period charge to earnings.

Note 15. COMMON STOCK

Common Stock

Voting Rights - Common Stock

All common stock holders are entitled to one vote per share on all matters submitted to be voted on by our

stockholders, subject to the preferences applicable to any preferred stock outstanding.

Dividends - Common Stock

All common stock holders are entitled to receive equal per share dividends when and if declared by the
Board of Directors, subject to the preferences applicable to any preferred stock outstanding. Certain of our debt
agreements place restrictions on us and our subsidiaries’ ability to pay cash dividends.

Shares Reserved for Future Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans

We had shares of common stock reserved for future issuance as follows:

(In thousands)
Equity compensation plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

December 30, 2018 December 31, 2017

11,1831

8,824

1

On November 13, 2018, we filed post-effective amendments to registration statements in order to deregister shares of common stock
that are no longer required to be registered for issuance under our stock incentive plans. Other than with respect to the SunPower
Corporation 2015 Omnibus Incentive Plan, no further awards have been issued under the prior plans and no awards remain outstanding
as of December 30, 2018. See ‘‘Note 17. Stock-Based Compensation’’ for additional information.

Note 16. NET LOSS PER SHARE

We calculate basic net loss per share by dividing earnings allocated to common stockholders by the basic

weighted average number of common shares outstanding for the period.

Diluted weighted average shares is computed using basic weighted average number of common shares

outstanding plus any potentially dilutive securities outstanding during the period using the treasury-stock-type
method and the if-converted method, except when their effect is anti-dilutive. Potentially dilutive securities
include stock options, restricted stock units, the Upfront Warrants held by Total, and the outstanding senior
convertible debentures.

The following table presents the calculation of basic and diluted net loss per share attributable to

stockholders:

(In thousands, except per share amounts)

Numerator:

Fiscal Year Ended
2017

2016

2018

Net loss attributable to stockholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$(811,091) $(929,121) $(448,635)

Denominator1:

Basic and diluted weighted-average common shares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

140,825

139,370

137,985

Basic and diluted net loss per share attributable to stockholders . . . . . . . . . .

$

(5.76) $

(6.67) $

(3.25)

1

As a result of our net loss attributable to stockholders for fiscal 2018, 2017 and 2016, the inclusion of all potentially dilutive stock
options, restricted stock units, and common shares under noted warrants and convertible debt would be anti-dilutive. Therefore, those
stock options, restricted stock units and shares were excluded from the computation of the weighted-average shares for diluted net loss
per share for such periods.

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The following is a summary of outstanding anti-dilutive potential common stock that was excluded from

diluted net loss per share attributable to stockholders in the following periods:

(In thousands)

Stock options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Restricted stock units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Upfront Warrants (held by Total) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4.00% debentures due 2023 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
0.75% debentures due 2018 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
0.875% debentures due 2021 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Fiscal Year Ended
2017

—
3,917
364
13,922
12,026
8,203

2016

141
4,997
3,721
13,922
12,026
8,203

2018

—
5,699
9,532
13,922
4,975
8,203

Note 17. STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION

The following table summarizes the consolidated stock-based compensation expense by line item in our
Consolidated Statements of Operations:

(In thousands)

Cost of SunPower Energy Services revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cost of SunPower Technologies revenue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Research and development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sales, general and administrative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2018

$ 2,369
2,626
5,497
17,724

Fiscal Year
2017

$ 2,599
2,889
6,448
22,738

2016

$ 5,956
11,133
11,896
32,514

Total stock-based compensation expense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$28,216

$34,674

$61,499

The following table summarizes the consolidated stock-based compensation expense by type of award:

(In thousands)

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

2018

Restricted stock units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Change in stock-based compensation capitalized in inventory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$27,922
294

$34,548
126

$58,562
2,937

Total stock-based compensation expense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$28,216

$34,674

$61,499

As of December 30, 2018, the total unrecognized stock-based compensation related to outstanding restricted

stock units was $47.9 million, which we expect to recognize over a weighted-average period of 2.6 years.

Equity Incentive Programs

Stock-based Incentive Plans

During fiscal 2018, we have three stock incentive plans: (i) the Third Amended and Restated 2005
SunPower Corporation Stock Incentive Plan (‘‘2005 Plan’’); (ii) the PowerLight Corporation Common Stock
Option and Common Stock Purchase Plan (‘‘PowerLight Plan’’); and (iii) the SunPower Corporation 2015
Omnibus Incentive Plan (‘‘2015 Plan’’). The PowerLight Plan, which was adopted by PowerLight’s Board of
Directors in October 2000, was assumed by us by way of the acquisition of PowerLight in fiscal 2007. The
2005 Plan was adopted by our Board of Directors in August 2005, and was approved by shareholders in
November 2005. The 2015 Plan, which subsequently replaced the 2005 Plan, was adopted by our Board of
Directors in February 2015, and was approved by shareholders in June 2015. On November 13, 2018, we filed
post-effective amendments to registration statements associated with the 2005 Plan and the PowerLight Plan,
among others, to deregister shares no longer required to be registered for issuance under those plans, as no new
awards had been made and all options had been exercised or had expired.

The 2015 Plan allows for the grant of options, as well as grant of stock appreciation rights, restricted stock

grants, restricted stock units and other equity rights. The 2015 Plan also allows for tax withholding obligations
related to stock option exercises or restricted stock awards to be satisfied through the retention of shares
otherwise released upon vesting. The 2015 Plan includes an automatic annual increase mechanism equal to the
lower of three percent of the outstanding shares of all classes of our common stock measured on the last day of

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the immediately preceding fiscal year, 6 million shares, or such other number of shares as determined by our
Board of Directors. In fiscal 2015, our Board of Directors voted to reduce the stock incentive plan’s automatic
increase from 3% to 2% for 2016. As of December 30, 2018, approximately 11.2 million shares were available
for grant under the 2015 Plan.

Incentive stock options, nonstatutory stock options, and stock appreciation rights may be granted at no less
than the fair value of the common stock on the date of grant. The options and rights become exercisable when
and as determined by our Board of Directors, although these terms generally do not exceed ten years for stock
options. We have not granted stock options since fiscal 2008. All previously granted stock options have been
exercised or expired and accordingly no options remain outstanding. Under the 2015 Plan, the restricted stock
grants and restricted stock units typically vest in equal installments annually over three or four years.

The majority of shares issued are net of the minimum statutory withholding requirements that we pay on

behalf of our employees. During fiscal 2018, 2017, and 2016, we withheld 0.7 million, 0.6 million and
1.0 million shares, respectively, to satisfy the employees’ tax obligations. We pay such withholding requirements
in cash to the appropriate taxing authorities. Shares withheld are treated as common stock repurchases for
accounting and disclosure purposes and reduce the number of shares outstanding upon vesting.

Restricted Stock Units and Stock Options

The following table summarizes our non-vested restricted stock units’ activities:

Restricted Stock Units

Shares
(in thousands)

Weighted-Average
Grant Date Fair
Value Per Share1

Outstanding as of January 1, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Granted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Vested2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Forfeited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Outstanding as of December 31, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Granted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Vested2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Forfeited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Outstanding as of December 30, 2018 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

6,147
4,863
(1,738)
(1,979)

7,293
4,449
(2,266)
(1,816)

7,660

$21.85
6.76
25.87
18.15

11.83
7.77
14.45
10.10

9.11

1

2

We estimate the fair value of our restricted stock awards and units at our stock price on the grant date.

Vested restricted stock awards include shares withheld on behalf of employees to satisfy the minimum statutory tax withholding
requirements.

There were no options outstanding and exercisable as of December 30, 2018. The intrinsic value of the
options exercised in fiscal 2018, 2017, and 2016 were zero, $1.7 thousand, and zero, respectively. There were no
stock options granted in fiscal 2018, 2017, and 2016.

Note 18. SEGMENT AND GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018, in connection with a reorganization of our business to better align and
focus resources towards an upstream and downstream business unit structure, we changed our segment reporting
from three end-customer segments to upstream and downstream segments: (i) SunPower Technologies and
(ii) SunPower Energy Services (see Note 1. Organization and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies).
Reclassifications of prior period segment information have been made to conform to the current period
presentation. These changes did not materially affect our previously reported Consolidated Financial Statements.

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Adjustments Made for Segment Purposes

Intersegment Gross Margin

To increase efficiencies and the competitive advantage of our technologies, SunPower Technologies sells solar
modules to SunPower Energy Services based on transfer prices determined based on management’s assessment of
market-based pricing terms. Such intersegment sales and related costs are eliminated at the corporate level to
derive our consolidated financial results.

8point3 Energy Partners

We include adjustments related to the sales of projects contributed to 8point3 Energy Partners based on the
difference between the fair market value of the consideration received and the net carrying value of the projects
contributed, of which, a portion is deferred in proportion to our retained equity interest in 8point3 Energy
Partners. Prior to the adoption of ASC 606, these sales were recognized under either real estate, lease, or
consolidation accounting guidance depending upon the nature of the individual asset contributed, with outcomes
ranging from no, partial, or full profit recognition. We adopted ASC 606 on January 1, 2018, using the full
retrospective method, which required us to restate each prior period presented. We recorded a material amount of
deferred profit associated with projects sold to 8point3 Energy Partners in 2015, the majority of which had
previously been deferred under real estate accounting. Accordingly, our carrying value in the 8point3 Group
materially increased upon adoption which required us to evaluate our investment in 8point3 Energy Partners for
other-than-temporary impairment (‘‘OTTI’’). In accordance with such evaluation, we recognized an OTTI charge
on the 8point3 investment balance in fiscal 2017. On June 19, 2018, we sold our equity interest in the 8point3
Group.

Legacy utility and power plant projects

We include adjustments related to the revenue recognition of certain legacy utility and power plant projects

based on the ratio of costs incurred to date to the total estimated costs at completion of the performance
obligations and, when relevant, the allocation of revenue and margin to our project development efforts at the
time of initial project sale. Prior to the adoption of ASC 606, such projects were accounted for under real estate
accounting guidance, under which no separate allocation to our project development efforts occurs and the
amount of revenue and margin that is recognized may be limited in circumstances where we have certain forms
of continuing involvement in the project. Under ASC 606, such projects are accounted for when the customer
obtains control of the promised goods or services which generally results in earlier recognition of revenue and
profit than previous U.S. GAAP. Over the life of each project, cumulative revenue and gross profit will
eventually be equivalent under both ASC 606 and segment treatments once these projects are completed.

Sale-leaseback transactions

We include adjustments related to the revenue recognition on certain sale-leaseback transactions based on
the net proceeds received from the buyer-lessor. Under U.S. GAAP, these transactions are accounted for under
the financing method in accordance with real estate accounting guidance. Under such guidance, no revenue or
profit is recognized at the inception of the transaction, and the net proceeds from the buyer-lessor are recorded as
a financing liability. Imputed interest is recorded on the liability equal to our incremental borrowing rate adjusted
solely to prevent negative amortization.

Impairment of property, plant and equipment

In the second quarter of fiscal 2018, we announced our proposed plan to change our corporate structure into

upstream and downstream business units, and our long-term strategy to upgrade our existing integrated back
connectivity, or IBC, technology to our NGT, or Maxeon 5. Accordingly, we expect to upgrade the equipment
associated with our manufacturing operations for the production of Maxeon 5 over the next several years. In
connection with these planned changes that will impact the utilization of our manufacturing assets as well as
continued pricing challenges in the industry, we determined indicators of impairment existed and therefore
performed a recoverability test by estimating future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated from
the use of these assets groups. Based on the test performed, we determined that our estimate of future
undiscounted net cash flows was insufficient to recover the carrying value of the upstream business unit’s assets

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and consequently performed an impairment analysis by comparing the carrying value of the asset group to its
estimated fair value. In accordance with such evaluation, we recognized a non-cash impairment charge on our
property, plant and equipment. Such asset impairment is excluded from our segment results as it is non-cash in
nature and not reflective of ongoing segment results.

Impairment and sale of residential lease assets

In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, we made the decision to sell or refinance our interest in our Residential
Lease Portfolio and as a result, determined it was necessary to evaluate the recoverability of the carrying amount
of the Residential Lease Portfolio. In accordance with such evaluation, we recognized a non-cash impairment
charge on our solar power systems leased and to be leased and an allowance for losses related to financing
receivables. In connection with the impairment loss, the carrying values of our solar power systems leased and to
be leased were reduced which resulted in lower depreciation charges. Such asset impairment and its
corresponding depreciation savings are excluded from the Company’s segment results as they are non-cash in
nature and not reflective of ongoing segment results.

In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018, we entered into a joint venture with HA SunStrong Capital LLC (‘‘HA

SunStrong Parent’’), an affiliate of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc., to acquire, own,
manage, operate, finance, and maintain a portfolio of residential rooftop or ground-mounted solar photovoltaic
electric generating systems (‘‘Solar Assets’’). Pursuant to the terms of the Purchase and Sale Agreement (the
‘‘PSA’’), we sold to HA SunStrong Parent, in exchange for consideration of $10.0 million, membership units
representing a 49.0% membership interest in SunStrong Capital Holdings, LLC (‘‘SunStrong’’), formerly our
wholly-owned subsidiary. Following the closing of the PSA, we deconsolidated certain entities that have
historically held the assets and liabilities comprising our residential lease business (the ‘‘Residential Lease
Portfolio’’), as part of our previously announced decision to sell a portion of our interest in the Residential Lease
Portfolio, and retained membership units representing a 51% membership interest in SunStrong. The loss on
divestment and the remaining unsold residential lease asset impairment with its corresponding depreciation
savings are excluded from our segment results as they are non-cash in nature and not reflective of ongoing
operating results.

Cost of above-market polysilicon

As described in ‘‘Note 10. Commitments and Contingencies,’’ we have entered into multiple long-term,
fixed-price supply agreements to purchase polysilicon for periods of up to ten years. The prices in select legacy
supply agreements, which include a cash portion and a non-cash portion attributable to the amortization of
prepayments made under the agreements, significantly exceed current market prices. Additionally, in order to
reduce inventory and improve working capital, we have periodically elected to sell polysilicon inventory in the
marketplace at prices below our purchase price, thereby incurring a loss. Starting in the first quarter of fiscal
2017, we have excluded the impact of our above-market cost of polysilicon, including the effect of above-market
polysilicon on product costs, losses incurred on sales of polysilicon to third parties, and inventory reserves and
project asset impairments recorded as a result of above-market polysilicon, from our segment results.

Stock-based compensation

We incur stock-based compensation expense related primarily to our equity incentive awards. We exclude

this expense from our segment results.

Amortization of intangible assets

We incur amortization expense on intangible assets as a result of acquisitions, which include patents, project

assets, purchased technology, in-process research and development and trade names. We exclude this expense
from our segment results.

Depreciation of idle equipment

In the fourth quarter of 2017, we changed the deployment plan for our next generation of solar cell

technology, and revised our depreciation estimates to reflect the use of certain assets over their shortened useful
life. Such asset depreciation is excluded from our non-GAAP financial measures as it is non-cash in nature and
not reflective of ongoing operating results.

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Gain on business divestiture

In the third quarter of fiscal 2018, we entered into a transaction pursuant to which the Company sold certain

assets and intellectual property related to the production of microinverters for purchase consideration comprised
of both cash and stock. In connection with this sale, the Company recognized a gain relating to this business
divestiture. Management believes that it is appropriate to exclude this gain from the Company’s Non-GAAP
financial measures as it is non-cash in nature and not reflective of ongoing operating results.

Unrealized loss on equity investments

In connection with the divestment of the Company’s microinverters business in the third quarter of fiscal

2018, the Company received a portion of the consideration in the form of common stock. The Company
recognizes adjustments related to the fair value of equity investments with readily determinable fair value based
on the changes in the stock price of these equity investments at every reporting period. Under GAAP, unrealized
gains and losses due to changes in stock prices for these securities are recorded in earnings while under
International Financial Reporting Standards (‘‘IFRS’’), an election can be made to recognize such gains and
losses in other comprehensive income. Such an election was made by Total S.A., a foreign registrant which
reports under the IFRS. Management believes that excluding the unrealized gain or loss on the equity
investments is consistent with the Company’s reporting process as part of its status as a consolidated subsidiary
of Total S.A. and better reflects the Company’s ongoing segment results.

Acquisition-related and other costs

In connection with the acquisition of certain assets of SolarWorld Americas, Inc. (‘‘SolarWorld Americas’’),
which closed on October 1, 2018, the Company incurred legal and accounting fees. In addition to the legal and
accounting fees incurred. Management believes that it is appropriate to exclude these from the Company’s
Non-GAAP financial measures as they would not have otherwise been incurred as part of its business operations
and are therefore not reflective of ongoing operating results.

Business reorganization costs

In connection with the reorganization of our business into an upstream and downstream business unit structure,
we incurred and expect to continue incurring expenses in the upcoming quarters associated with reclassifying
prior period segment information, reorganization of corporate functions and responsibilities to the business units,
updating accounting policies and processes and implementing systems to fulfill the requirements of the master
supply agreement between the segments. Management believes that it is appropriate to exclude these from the
Company’s Non-GAAP financial measures as they would not have otherwise been incurred as part of its business
operations and are therefore not reflective of ongoing operating results.

Non-cash interest expense

We incur non-cash interest expense related to the amortization of items such as original issuance discounts

on certain of our convertible debt. We exclude this expense from our segment results.

Restructuring expense

We incur restructuring expense related to reorganization plans aimed towards realigning resources consistent

with our global strategy and improving our overall operating efficiency and cost structure. We exclude this
expense from our segment results.

IPO-related costs

We incurred legal, accounting, advisory, valuation, and other costs related to the IPO of 8point3 Energy

Partners. We exclude these costs from our segment results.

Other

We combine amounts previously disclosed under separate captions into ‘‘Other’’ when amounts do not have

a significant impact on the presented fiscal periods.

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Segment and Geographical Information

The following tables present segment results for fiscal 2018, 2017 and 2016 for revenue, gross margin, and

adjusted EBITDA, each as reviewed by the CODM, and their reconciliation to our consolidated GAAP results, as
well as information about significant customers and revenue by geography based on the destination of the
shipments, and property, plant and equipment, net by segment.

(In thousands):

Revenue from external customers:

2018

2017

2016

SunPower
Energy
Services

SunPower
Technologies

SunPower
Energy
Services

SunPower
Technologies

SunPower
Energy
Services

SunPower
Technologies

North America Residential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 673,758 $
North America Commercial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Operations and maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
International DG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Module sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Development services and legacy power plant.
Intersegment revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

— $ 531,291 $
— 596,729
42,233
—
— 322,028
— 186,712
— 162,227
— 388,539

— $ 639,174 $
— 415,247
37,127
—
— 209,346
— 173,617
— 575,342
— 466,949

—
—
—
— 153,894
— 107,412
— 1,350,006
— 446,537

422,762
47,447

Total segment revenue as reviewed by CODM . . $1,143,967 $1,059,506 $1,170,253 $1,425,254 $1,091,548 $2,057,849

Segment gross profit as reviewed by CODM. . . . $ 142,087 $

19,050 $ 126,049 $ 135,574 $ 209,075 $ 201,741

Adjusted EBITDA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 151,095 $

27,980 $ 109,863 $ 145,696 $ 141,885 $ 243,039

Reconciliation of Segment Revenue to Consolidated GAAP Revenue
(In thousands):

Total segment revenue as reviewed by CODM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjustments to segment revenue:

Fiscal Year Ended
2017

2016

2018

$2,203,473

2,595,507

3,149,397

Intersegment elimination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
8point3 Energy Partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Utility and power plant projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sale of operating lease assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sale-leaseback transactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(388,539)
8,588
4,145
—
(101,582)

(466,949)
(7,198)
(54,659)
—
(272,654)

(446,537)
(29,614)
(13,981)
(28,096)
(78,532)

Consolidated GAAP revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$1,726,085

$1,794,047

$2,552,637

Reconciliation of Segment Gross Profit to Consolidated GAAP Gross Profit
(In thousands):

Fiscal Year Ended
2017

2016

2018

Segment gross profit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjustments to segment gross profit:

$ 161,137

$ 261,623

$ 410,816

Intersegment elimination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
8point3 Energy Partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Utility and power plant projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sale of operating lease assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sale-leaseback transactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Impairment of property, plant and equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Impairment of residential lease assets1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Arbitration ruling. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cost of above-market polysilicon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Stock-based compensation expense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Amortization of intangible assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Depreciation of idle equipment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Non-cash interest expense. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(25,386)
8,337
1,244
—
(242)
(355,107)
14,847
—
(87,228)
(4,996)
(8,966)
(721)
—

(25,151)
2,656
(41,746)
—
(31,094)
—
—
—
(166,906)
(5,489)
(10,206)
(2,300)
(32)

(18,045)
23,157
(6,064)
(8,554)
(11,352)
—
—
5,852
(148,265)
(17,090)
(7,680)
—
(956)

Consolidated GAAP gross profit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$(297,081)

$ (18,645)

$ 221,819

168

Reconciliation of Segments EBITDA to Loss before income taxes and equity in
earnings (losses) of unconsolidated investees
(In thousands):

Segment adjusted EBITDA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjustments to segment adjusted EBITDA:

8point3 Energy Partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Utility and power plant projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sale of operating lease assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sale-leaseback transactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Impairment of property, plant and equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Impairment of residential lease assets1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cost of above-market polysilicon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Stock-based compensation expense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Amortization of intangible assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Depreciation of idle equipment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Arbitration ruling. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
IPO-related costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Acquisition-related and other costs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gain on business divestiture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Restructuring expense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Goodwill Impairment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Unrealized loss on equity investments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Non-cash interest expense. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Equity in earnings (losses) of unconsolidated investees . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net loss attributable to noncontrolling interests. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cash interest expense, net of interest income . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Depreciation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Corporate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Business reorganization costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Fiscal Year Ended
2017

2016

2018

$ 179,075

$

255,559

$ 384,924

8,485
1,244
—
(18,802)
(369,168)
(227,507)
(87,228)
(28,215)
(8,966)
(721)
—
—
(17,727)
59,347
(17,497)
—
(6,375)
(68)
17,815
(106,406)
(86,394)
(120,367)
(67,866)
(1,330)
—

(78,990)
(41,746)
—
(39,318)
—
(473,709)
(166,906)
(34,674)
(19,048)
(2,300)
—
82
—
—
(21,045)
—
—
(128)
(25,938)
(241,747)
(79,965)
(164,970)
(65,907)
—
—

(25,127)
(6,602)
(8,607)
(11,699)
—
—
(148,265)
(61,498)
(17,369)
—
5,852
304
—
—
(207,189)
(57,765)
—
(1,057)
(14,295)
(72,780)
(57,734)
(156,464)
(73,052)
—
31

Loss before income taxes and equity in earnings (losses) of

unconsolidated investees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

$(898,671) $(1,200,750) $(528,392)

1

For the year ended December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we recorded in aggregate a loss on sale and impairment of residential
lease assets of $252.0 million and $624.3 million, respectively. As a result of the partnership flip structures with noncontrolling
interests where these assets are held in, we allocated an insignificant portion of the impairment charge to the noncontrolling interest
using the HLBV method. The net impairment charges attributable to us totaled $227.5 million and $473.7 million for the year ended
December 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively. During fiscal 2018, we also recorded $14.8 million of depreciation savings
as a result of the impairment charge recognized in the prior period.

169

(As a percentage of total revenue):

Significant Customers:
Actis GP LLP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
8point3 Energy Partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Southern Renewable Partnerships, LLC. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Business Segment
Power Plant
Power Plant
Power Plant

(As a percentage of total revenue):

Revenue by geography: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
United States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Japan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rest of World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(In thousands):

SunPower Energy Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SunPower Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Corporate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Property, plant and equipment, net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Note 19. SUBSEQUENT EVENT

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

2018

*
*
n/a

13% n/a

*
*

10%
15%

Fiscal Year
2017

2016

2018

68%
5%
27%

79%
6%
15%

85%
6%
9%

100%

100%

100%

Fiscal Year

2018

$512,953
323,941
2,977

$839,871

2017

$ 445,241
698,553
4,051

$1,147,845

SELECTED UNAUDITED QUARTERLY FINANCIAL DATA

Consolidated Statements of Operations:

(In thousands, except per
share data)

December 30,
2018

September 30,
2018

July 1,
2018

April 1,
2018

December 31,
2017

October 1,
2017

July 2,
2017

April 2,
2017

Three Months Ended1

Revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gross margin . . . . . . . . .
Net income (loss) . . . . . .
Net income (loss)
attributable to
stockholders . . . . . . . .
Basic and diluted net loss
per share attributable
to stockholders . . . . . .

$ 456,837
$ (7,571)
$(172,146)

$ 428,263
$
9,755
$(113,911)

$ 651,134
$ 449,097 $ 391,888
$(310,215) $ 10,248
$ (13,593)
$(483,843) $(147,597) $(753,566)

$485,836 $ 327,981 $ 329,095
$ 21,289 $ 16,167 $ (45,584)
$ (70,838) $(109,577) $(236,886)

$(158,174)

$ (89,826)

$(447,117) $(115,974) $(572,651)

$ (46,229) $ (90,515) $(219,725)

$

(1.12)

$

(0.64)

$

(3.17) $

(0.83) $

(4.10)

$

(0.33) $

(0.65) $

(1.58)

1

Previously reported information for fiscal year 2017 has been restated for the adoption of Accounting Standards Codification (ASC)
Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers. For further discussion of this standard, see Note 1 to the Consolidated Financial
Statements.

170

ITEM 9: CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND

FINANCIAL DISCLOSURES

None.

ITEM 9A: CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

We maintain ‘‘disclosure controls and procedures,’’ as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the

Exchange Act, that are designed to provide reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed in
reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within
the time periods specified in SEC rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated
to our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate to allow
timely decisions regarding required disclosure. In designing and evaluating our disclosure controls and
procedures, management recognizes that disclosure controls and procedures, no matter how well conceived and
operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the disclosure controls and
procedures are met. Additionally, in designing disclosure controls and procedures, our management is required to
apply its judgment in evaluating the cost-benefit relationship of possible disclosure controls and procedures. The
design of any disclosure control and procedure also is based in part upon certain assumptions about the
likelihood of future events, and there can be no assurance that any design will succeed in achieving its stated
goals under all potential future conditions.

Based on their evaluation as of the end of the period covered by this Annual Report on Form 10-K, our
Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer have concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures
were effective as of December 30, 2018 at a reasonable assurance level.

Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting

Management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial

reporting, as defined in Exchange Act Rule 13a-15(f). Management conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness
of our internal control over financial reporting using the criteria described in Internal Control-Integrated
Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013
framework) (‘‘COSO’’). Based on this evaluation, management concluded that our internal control over financial
reporting was effective as of December 30, 2018 based on the criteria described in Internal Control-Integrated
Framework issued by COSO. Management reviewed the results of its assessment with our Audit Committee.

The effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 30, 2018 has
been audited by Ernst & Young LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, as stated in their report
which is included in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

We regularly review our system of internal control over financial reporting and make changes to our
processes and systems to improve controls and increase efficiency, while ensuring that we maintain an effective
internal control environment. Changes may include such activities as implementing new, more efficient systems,
consolidating activities, and migrating processes.

There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting that occurred during our most recent

fiscal quarter that materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over
financial reporting.

ITEM 9B: OTHER INFORMATION

None.

ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Information appearing under this Item is incorporated herein by reference to our proxy statement for the

2019 annual meeting of stockholders.

171

We have adopted a code of ethics, entitled Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, that applies to all of our

directors, officers and employees, including our principal executive officer, principal financial officer, and
principal accounting officer. We have made it available, free of charge, on our website at www.sunpower.com,
and if we amend it or grant any waiver under it that applies to our principal executive officer, principal financial
officer, or principal accounting officer, we will promptly post that amendment or waiver on our website as well.

ITEM 11: EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

Information appearing under this Item is incorporated herein by reference to our proxy statement for the

2019 annual meeting of stockholders.

ITEM 12: SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND

RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

Information appearing under this Item is incorporated herein by reference to our proxy statement for the

2019 annual meeting of stockholders.

ITEM 13: CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR

INDEPENDENCE

Information appearing under this Item is incorporated herein by reference to our proxy statement for the

2019 annual meeting of stockholders.

ITEM 14: PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES

Information appearing under this Item is incorporated herein by reference to our proxy statement for the

2019 annual meeting of stockholders.

ITEM 15: EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES

The following documents are filed as a part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K:

1. Financial Statements:

Reports of Ernst & Young LLP, Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Consolidated Balance Sheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Consolidated Statements of Operations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Page

95
97
98
99
100
101
104

2. Financial Statement Schedule:

All financial statement schedules are omitted as the required information is inapplicable or the information is
presented in the Consolidated Financial Statements or Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements under Item 8
of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

172

3. Exhibits:

EXHIBIT INDEX

Exhibit
Number

3.1

3.2

4.1

4.3

4.6

4.7

10.3

10.4

10.5

10.6

10.7

10.11

10.12

Description

Restated Certificate of Incorporation of SunPower Corporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit
3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission on November 16, 2011).
Amended and Restated By-Laws of SunPower Corporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1
to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
on November 7, 2017).
Specimen Common Stock Certificate (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s
Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 29,
2012).
Certificate of Designation of Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock of SunPower Corporation
(incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.6 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 16, 2011).
Indenture, dated as of December 15, 2015 by and between SunPower Corporation and Wells Fargo
Bank, National Association, as Trustee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s
Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 16,
2015).
Indenture, dated as of June 11, 2014 by and between SunPower Corporation and Wells Fargo Bank,
National Association, as Trustee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s
Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 11, 2014).
Continuing Agreement for Standby Letters of Credit and Demand Guarantees, dated June 29, 2016
by and among the Company, Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch, and Deutsche Bank Trust
Company Americas (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.63 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report
on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 10, 2016).
Letter of Credit Facility Agreement, dated June 29, 2016, by and among SunPower Corporation,
SunPower Corporation, Systems, Total S.A., the Subsidiary Applicants party thereto, and The Bank
of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.64 to the Registrant’s
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 10,
2016).
Letter of Credit Facility Agreement, dated June 29, 2016, by and among SunPower Corporation,
SunPower Corporation, Systems, Total S.A., the Subsidiary Applicants party thereto, and Credit
Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.65 to the
Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
August 10, 2016).
Letter of Credit Facility Agreement, dated June 29, 2016, by and among SunPower Corporation,
SunPower Corporation, Systems, Total S.A., the Subsidiary Applicants party thereto, and HSBC
Bank USA, National Association (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.66 to the Registrant’s
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 10,
2016).
Transfer Agreement, dated June 29, 2016, by and among SunPower Corporation, SunPower
Corporation, Systems, Total S.A., Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch as administrative agent, and
the Banks party thereto (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.67 to the Registrant’s Quarterly
Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 9, 2016).
Affiliation Agreement, dated April 28, 2011, between SunPower Corporation and Total Gas &
Power USA, SAS (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.6 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on
Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 12, 2011).
Amendment to Affiliation Agreement, dated April 28, 2011, between SunPower Corporation and
Total Gas & Power USA, SAS (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of Registrant’s Current
Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 7, 2011).

173

Exhibit
Number

10.13

10.14

10.15

10.16

10.17

10.18

10.19

10.22^

10.23^

10.26^

10.27^

10.28^

10.29^

10.30^

10.31^

Description

Second Amendment to Affiliation Agreement, dated December 23, 2011, by and between Total G&P
and SunPower Corporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 of Registrant’s Current
Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 23, 2011).
Amendment No. 3 to Affiliation Agreement, dated February 28, 2012, by and between SunPower
Corporation and Total Gas & Power USA, SAS (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.91 to the
Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
February 29, 2012).
Amendment No. 4 to Affiliation Agreement, dated August 10, 2012, by and between SunPower
Corporation and Total Gas & Power USA, SAS (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the
Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
November 2, 2012).
Affiliation Agreement Guaranty, dated April 28, 2011, between SunPower Corporation and Total
S.A. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.7 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 12, 2011).
Research & Collaboration Agreement, dated April 28, 2011, between SunPower Corporation and
Total Gas & Power USA, SAS (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.8 to the Registrant’s
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 12,
2011).
Amendment to Research & Collaboration Agreement, dated June 7, 2011, between SunPower
Corporation and Total Gas & Power USA, SAS (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 of
Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
June 7, 2011).
Registration Rights Agreement, dated April 28, 2011, between SunPower Corporation and Total Gas
& Power USA, SAS (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.9 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report
on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 12, 2011).
SunPower Corporation 2015 Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to
the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-205207), filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission on June 25, 2015).
Forms of agreements under SunPower Corporation 2015 Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by
reference to Exhibit 10.60 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission on May 6, 2016).
Outside Director Compensation Policy, as amended on July 22, 2015 (incorporated by reference to
Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission on October 29, 2015).
Form of Employment Agreement for Executive Officers (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.47
to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission on February 18, 2014).
SunPower Corporation Annual Executive Bonus Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to
the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
on April 30, 2014).
SunPower Corporation Executive Semi-Annual Bonus Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit
10.2 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission on April 30, 2014).
Form of Indemnification Agreement for Directors and Officers (incorporated by reference to Exhibit
10.24 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission on February 19, 2016).
2016 Management Career Transition Plan, dated August 10, 2015 (incorporated by reference to
Exhibit 10.2 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission on October 29, 2015).

174

Exhibit
Number

10.32†

10.33

10.34

10.35

10.36

10.37

10.38

10.39

10.40†

10.41†

10.42

Description

Mortgage Loan Agreement, dated May 6, 2010, by and among SunPower Philippines Manufacturing
Ltd., SPML Land, Inc. and International Finance Corporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit
10.13 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission on August 13, 2010).
Guarantee Agreement, dated May 6, 2010, by and between SunPower Corporation and International
Finance Corporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.14 to the Registrant’s Quarterly
Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 13, 2010).
Amendment No. 1 to Loan Agreement, dated November 2, 2010, by and between SunPower
Philippines Manufacturing Ltd. and International Finance Corporation (incorporated by reference to
Exhibit 10.42 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission on February 28, 2011).
Mortgage Supplement No. 1, dated November 3, 2010, by and between SunPower Philippines
Manufacturing Ltd., SPML Land, Inc. and International Finance Corporation (incorporated by
reference to Exhibit 10.63 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission on February 25, 2013).
Mortgage Supplement No. 2, dated October 9, 2012, by and between SunPower Philippines
Manufacturing Ltd., SPML Land, Inc. and International Finance Corporation (incorporated by
reference to Exhibit 10.64 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission on February 25, 2013).
Mortgage Supplement No. 3, dated February 7, 2013, by and between SunPower Philippines
Manufacturing Ltd., SPML Land, Inc. and International Finance Corporation (incorporated by
reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission on May 7, 2013).
Loan Agreement, dated December 1, 2010, by and among California Enterprise Development
Authority and SunPower Corporation, relating to $30,000,000 California Enterprise Development
Authority Tax Exempt Recovery Zone Facility Revenue Bonds (SunPower Corporation -
Headquarters Project) Series 2010 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.50 to the Registrant’s
Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 28,
2011).
First Supplement to Loan Agreement, dated June 1, 2011, by and between California Enterprise
Development Authority and SunPower Corporation, relating to $30,000,000 California Enterprise
Development Authority Tax Exempt Recovery Zone Facility Revenue Bonds (SunPower
Corporation - Headquarters Project) Series 2010 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.16 to the
Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
August 9, 2011).
Letter of Credit Facility Agreement, dated August 9, 2011, by and among SunPower Corporation,
Total S.A., the Subsidiary Applicants party thereto, the Banks party thereto, and Deutsche Bank AG
New York Branch (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on
Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 10, 2011).
First Amendment to Letter of Credit Facility Agreement, dated December 20, 2011, by and among
SunPower Corporation, Total S.A., the Subsidiary Applicants party thereto, the Banks party thereto,
and Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.65 to the
Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
February 29, 2012).
Second Amendment to Letter of Credit Facility Agreement, dated December 19, 2012, by and
among SunPower Corporation, Total S.A., the Subsidiary Applicants party thereto, the Banks party
thereto, and Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.69 to
the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
on February 25, 2013).

175

Exhibit
Number

10.43

10.44

10.45

10.46

10.47

10.59

10.60

10.61

10.62

10.69

10.70

10.71*

10.72

Description

Third Amendment to Letter of Credit Facility Agreement, dated December 20, 2013, by and among
SunPower Corporation, SunPower Corporation, Systems, Total S.A., Deutsche Bank AG New York
Branch (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.61 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 18, 2014).
Fourth Amendment to Letter of Credit Facility Agreement, dated December 23, 2014, by and among
SunPower Corporation, SunPower Corporation, Systems, Total S.A., Deutsche Bank AG New York
Branch (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.66 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 24, 2015).
Fifth Amendment to Letter of Credit Facility Agreement, dated October 7, 2015, by and among
SunPower Corporation, SunPower Corporation, Systems, Total S.A., Deutsche Bank AG New York
Branch (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-Q
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 29, 2015).
Continuing Agreement for Standby Letters of Credit and Demand Guarantees, dated September 27,
2011, by and among SunPower Corporation, Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas, and
Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.10 to the
Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
November 10, 2011).
Security Agreement, dated September 27, 2011, by and among SunPower Corporation, Deutsche
Bank Trust Company Americas, and Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch (incorporated by
reference to Exhibit 10.11 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission on November 10, 2011).
License and Technology Agreement, dated July 5, 2010, by and among SunPower Technology, Ltd.,
AU Optronics Singapore Pte. Ltd. and AUO SunPower Sdn. Bhd. (formerly known as SunPower
Malaysia Manufacturing Sdn. Bhd.) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Registrant’s
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
November 12, 2010).
Compensation and Funding Agreement, dated February 28, 2012, by and between SunPower
Corporation and Total S.A. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.90 to the Registrant’s Annual
Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 29, 2012).
Amendment No. 1 to Compensation and Funding Agreement, dated August 10, 2012, by and
between SunPower Corporation and Total S.A. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the
Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
November 2, 2012).
Warrant to Purchase Common Stock, dated February 28, 2012, issued to Total Gas & Power USA,
SAS (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.92 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 29, 2012).
Letter Agreement, dated May 8, 2017, by and between SunPower Corporation and Total S.A.
(incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 9, 2017).
Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Agreement, dated June 23, 2017, by and among SunPower
Corporation, its subsidiaries, SunPower Corporation, Systems, SunPower North America LLC, and
SunPower Capital, LLC, and Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank and the other lenders
party thereto (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on
Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 2, 2017).
Indenture, dated November 28, 2018, by and between SunStrong 2018-1 Issuer, LLC and Wells
Fargo Bank, National Association (‘‘Wells Fargo’’), as indenture trustee.
Purchase and Sale Agreement, dated as of November 5, 2018, by and between SunPower
Corporation and HA SunStrong Capital LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the
Registrants Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
November 5, 2018).

176

Exhibit
Number

10.73†

10.74†*

10.75^

10.76

10.77

10.78*

10.79*

21.1*
23.1*
24.1*
31.1*
31.2*
32.1**

Description

Master Supply Agreement, dated as of August 9, 2018, by and between SunPower Corporation and
Enphase Energy, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.1 to Amendment No. 1 of Enphase
Energy, Inc.’s Current Report on Form 8-K/A filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
on October 23, 2018).
Amendment No. 1 to Master Supply Agreement, dated as of December 10, 2018, by and between
SunPower Corporation and Enphase Energy, Inc.
Equity Agreement and Release, dated as of June 25, 2018, by and between SunPower Corporation
and Charles D. Boynton (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Registrant’s Quarterly
Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 1, 2018).
Term Credit Agreement, dated as of May 22, 2018, by and among SunPower HoldCo, LLC (as
borrower), SunPower Corporation (as guarantor), and Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment
Bank (as Lender) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on
Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 1, 2018).
Amendment to Continuing Agreement for Standby Letters of Credit and Demand Guarantees, dated
as of June 29, 2016, by and among Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch and Deutsche Bank Trust
Company Americas (collectively, as issuer), SunPower Corporation (as applicant), and SunPower
Corporation, Systems (as subsidiary applicant), dated as of March 22, 2018 (incorporated by
reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission on March 28, 2018).
Amended and Restated Loan Agreement between SunStrong Capital Acquisition, LLC and
SunStrong Capital Lender, LLC dated as of November 28, 2018.
Loan Agreement between SunStrong 2018-1 Mezzanine, LLC and SunStrong Capital Lender, LLC
dated as of November 28, 2018.
List of Subsidiaries.
Consent of Ernst & Young LLP, Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm.
Power of Attorney.
Certification by Chief Executive Officer Pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a).
Certification by Chief Financial Officer Pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a).
Certification Furnished Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350 as Adopted Pursuant to Section 906 of
the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

101.INS*+ XBRL Instance Document.
101.SCH*+ XBRL Taxonomy Schema Document.
101.CAL*+ XBRL Taxonomy Calculation Linkbase Document.
101.LAB*+ XBRL Taxonomy Label Linkbase Document.
101.PRE*+ XBRL Taxonomy Presentation Linkbase Document.
101.DEF*+ XBRL Taxonomy Definition Linkbase Document.

Exhibits marked with a carrot (^) are director and officer compensatory arrangements.

Exhibits marked with an asterisk (*) are filed herewith.

Exhibits marked with two asterisks (**) are furnished and not filed herewith.

Exhibits marked with an extended cross (†) are subject to a request for confidential treatment filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.

Exhibits marked with a cross (+) are XBRL (Extensible Business Reporting Language) information furnished and
not filed herewith, are not a part of a registration statement or Prospectus for purposes of sections 11 or 12 of
the Securities Act of 1933, are deemed not filed for purposes of section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, and otherwise are not subject to liability under these sections.

177

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant

has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereto duly authorized.

SIGNATURES

SUNPOWER CORPORATION

Dated: February 13, 2019

By:

/s/ MANAVENDRA S. SIAL

Manavendra S. Sial
Executive Vice President and
Chief Financial Officer

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this Report has been signed below by

the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

Signature

Title

Date

February 13, 2019

February 13, 2019

February 13, 2019

February 13, 2019

February 13, 2019

February 13, 2019

February 13, 2019

February 13, 2019

February 13, 2019

February 13, 2019

February 13, 2019

Chief Executive Officer and
Director
(Principal Executive Officer)

Executive Vice President and
Chief Financial Officer
(Principal Financial Officer)
Vice President, Corporate
Controller
(Principal Accounting Officer)
Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

/S/ THOMAS H. WERNER

Thomas H. Werner

/S/ MANAVENDRA S. SIAL

Manavendra S. Sial

/S/ VIDUL PRAKASH

Vidul Prakash

*

Helle Kristoffersen
*

François Badoual
*

Catherine A. Lesjak
*

Thomas R. McDaniel
*

Ladislas Paszkiewicz
*

Julien Pouget
*

Antoine Larenaudie
*

Patrick Wood III

* By: /S/ MANAVENDRA S. SIAL

Manavendra S. Sial
Power of Attorney

178

NOTICE OF THE 2019 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

TO ALL SUNPOWER STOCKHOLDERS:

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the 2019 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the ‘‘Annual Meeting’’) of

SunPower Corporation, a Delaware corporation (‘‘SunPower’’), will be held on:

Date:

Time:

Place:

Virtual Meeting
Admission:

Thursday, May 16, 2019

9:00 a.m. Pacific Time

Online at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SPWR2019

This year’s Annual Meeting will be a virtual meeting of stockholders, conducted via a live
webcast. You will be able to attend the Annual Meeting online, vote your shares
electronically, and submit questions during the meeting by visiting
www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SPWR2019. Have your Notice of Internet Availability of
Proxy Materials or proxy card in hand when you access the website and then follow the
instructions. To participate in the meeting, you will need the 16-digit control number
included on the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials or proxy card. Online
check-in will begin at 8:30 a.m. Pacific Time, and you should allow ample time for the
online check-in procedures.

Items of
Business:

1.

2.
3.

4.

The re-election of three directors to serve as Class II directors on our Board of
Directors;
The approval, in an advisory vote, of our named executive officer compensation;
The ratification of the appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as our independent
registered public accounting firm for fiscal year 2019; and
The transaction of such other business as may properly come before the Annual
Meeting or any adjournment or postponement thereof.

The foregoing items of business are more fully described in the proxy statement accompanying this notice of
the Annual Meeting. On or about April 5, 2019, we began mailing to certain stockholders a Notice of Internet
Availability of Proxy Materials containing instructions on how to access our proxy materials, including our 2018
Annual Report, via the Internet. Stockholders who did not receive the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy
Materials will receive a paper copy of this notice of the Annual Meeting, the proxy statement, our 2018 Annual
Report, and the form of proxy.

All stockholders are cordially invited to attend the Annual Meeting. Only stockholders of record at the close of
business on March 21, 2019 (the ‘‘Record Date’’) are entitled to receive notice of, and to vote at, the Annual Meeting
or any adjournment or postponement of the Annual Meeting. Any registered stockholder in attendance at the Annual
Meeting and entitled to vote may do so during the meeting even if such stockholder returned a proxy.

San Jose, California
April 5, 2019

FOR THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Kenneth Mahaffey
Corporate Secretary

IMPORTANT: WHETHER OR NOT YOU EXPECT TO ATTEND THE ANNUAL MEETING, PLEASE
COMPLETE, DATE, AND SIGN THE PROXY CARD AND MAIL IT PROMPTLY, OR YOU MAY VOTE
BY TELEPHONE OR VIA THE INTERNET BY FOLLOWING THE DIRECTIONS ON THE PROXY
CARD. ANY ONE OF THESE METHODS WILL ENSURE REPRESENTATION OF YOUR SHARES AT
THE ANNUAL MEETING. NO POSTAGE NEED BE AFFIXED TO THE COMPANY-PROVIDED PROXY
CARD ENVELOPE IF MAILED IN THE UNITED STATES.

PROXY STATEMENT FOR
2019 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INFORMATION CONCERNING SOLICITATION AND VOTING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Delivery of Voting Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Record Date and Shares Outstanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Board Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Voting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
How Your Proxy Will Be Voted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Revoking Your Proxy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Solicitation of Proxies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Voting Results. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Note Concerning Forward-Looking Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
PROPOSAL ONE—RE-ELECTION OF CLASS II DIRECTORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
BOARD STRUCTURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Determination of Independence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Leadership Structure and Risk Oversight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Board Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Controlled Company, Nasdaq Listing Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Board Committees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Audit Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Compensation Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Finance Committee. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Stockholder Communications with Board. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Directors’ Attendance at Our Annual Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Submission of Stockholder Proposals for the 2020 Annual Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Corporate Governance Principles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Code of Business Conduct and Ethics; Related Persons Transactions Policy and Procedures. . . . . . . . . .
Certain Relationships and Related Persons Transactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
AUDIT COMMITTEE REPORT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
DIRECTOR COMPENSATION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2018 Director Compensation Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2018 Director Compensation Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Stock Ownership Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

PROPOSAL TWO—ADVISORY VOTE TO APPROVE NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICER

COMPENSATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
COMPENSATION DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
General Philosophy and Objectives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Compensation Setting Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Compensation Consultant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Peer Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Market and Peer Group Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2018 Compensation Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Page

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38

Analysis of Fiscal 2018 Compensation Decisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Employment and Severance Arrangements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Section 162(m) Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Stock Ownership Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other Disclosures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
COMPENSATION COMMITTEE REPORT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Compensation of Named Executive Officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2018 Summary Compensation Table. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grants of Plan-Based Awards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2018 Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Equity Incentive Plan Compensation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year-End . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Outstanding Equity Awards at 2018 Fiscal Year-End Table. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2018 Option Exercises and Stock Vested Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Termination Payments Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Employment and Severance Agreements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CEO Pay Ratio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF MANAGEMENT AND CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS . . . . . . .
Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
COMPANY STOCK PRICE PERFORMANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
EQUITY COMPENSATION PLAN INFORMATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
PROPOSAL THREE—RATIFICATION OF THE APPOINTMENT OF INDEPENDENT

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REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM FOR FISCAL YEAR 2019 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
APPENDIX A – USE OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

67
A-1

SUNPOWER CORPORATION
77 Rio Robles
San Jose, California 95134

PROXY STATEMENT FOR
2019 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

INFORMATION CONCERNING SOLICITATION AND VOTING

General

The Board of Directors (the ‘‘Board’’) of SunPower Corporation, a Delaware corporation, is furnishing this
proxy statement and proxy card to you in connection with its solicitation of proxies to be used at the Annual Meeting
of Stockholders of SunPower Corporation to be held on May 16, 2019 at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Time (the ‘‘Meeting
Date’’), or at any adjournment(s), continuation(s), or postponement(s) of the meeting (the ‘‘Annual Meeting’’).

This year’s Annual Meeting will be a virtual meeting of stockholders, conducted via a live webcast. You will
be able to attend the Annual Meeting online, vote your shares electronically, and submit your questions during the
meeting by visiting www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SPWR2019. Have your Notice of Internet Availability of
Proxy Materials or proxy card in hand when you access the website and then follow the instructions. To participate
in the meeting, you will need the 16-digit control number included on the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy
Materials or proxy card.

Online check-in will begin at 8:30 a.m. Pacific Time on the Meeting Date, and you should allow ample time for
the online check-in procedures. We will have technicians ready to assist you should you have any technical
difficulties accessing the virtual meeting.

We use a number of abbreviations in this proxy statement. We refer to SunPower Corporation as ‘‘SunPower,’’
‘‘the Company,’’ or ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ or ‘‘our.’’ The term ‘‘proxy solicitation materials’’ includes this proxy statement, the
notice of the Annual Meeting, and the proxy card. References to ‘‘fiscal 2018’’ mean our 2018 fiscal year, which
began on January 1, 2018 and ended on December 30, 2018, while references to ‘‘fiscal 2017’’ mean our 2017 fiscal
year, which began on January 2, 2017 and ended on December 31, 2017.

Our principal executive offices are located at 77 Rio Robles, San Jose, California 95134, and our telephone

number is (408) 240-5500.

Important Notice Regarding The Availability of Proxy Materials

We have elected to comply with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the ‘‘SEC’’) ‘‘Notice and Access’’
rules, which allow us to make our proxy solicitation materials available to our stockholders over the Internet. Under
these rules, on or about April 5, 2019, we started mailing to certain of our stockholders a Notice of Internet
Availability of Proxy Materials (the ‘‘Notice of Internet Availability’’). The Notice of Internet Availability contains
instructions on how our stockholders can both access the proxy solicitation materials and our 2018 Annual Report
on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 30, 2018 (the ‘‘2018 Annual Report’’) online and vote online. By
sending the Notice of Internet Availability instead of paper copies of the proxy materials, we expect to lower the costs
and reduce the environmental impact of our Annual Meeting.

Our proxy solicitation materials and our 2018 Annual Report are available at www.proxyvote.com.

Stockholders receiving the Notice of Internet Availability may request a paper or electronic copy of our proxy
solicitation materials by following the instructions set forth on the Notice of Internet Availability. Stockholders who
did not receive the Notice of Internet Availability will continue to receive a paper or electronic copy of our proxy
solicitation materials, which were first mailed to stockholders and made public on or about April 5, 2019.

Delivery of Voting Materials

If you would like to further reduce our environmental impact and costs in mailing proxy materials, you can
consent to receive all future proxy statements, proxy cards, and annual reports electronically via e-mail or the
Internet. To sign up for electronic delivery, please follow the instructions provided for voting via www.proxyvote.com
and, when prompted, indicate that you agree to receive or access proxy materials electronically in future years.

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To reduce the environmental waste and expense of delivering duplicate materials to our stockholders, we are
taking advantage of householding rules that permit us to deliver only one set of proxy solicitation materials and our
2018 Annual Report, or one copy of the Notice of Internet Availability, to stockholders who share the same address,
unless otherwise requested. Each stockholder retains a separate right to vote on all matters presented at the Annual
Meeting.

If you share an address with another stockholder and have received only one set of materials, you may write or
call us to request a separate copy of these materials at no cost to you. For future annual meetings, you may request
separate materials or request that we only send one set of materials to you if you are receiving multiple copies by
writing to us at SunPower Corporation, 77 Rio Robles, San Jose, California 95134, Attention: Corporate Secretary,
or calling us at (408) 240-5500.

A copy of our 2018 Annual Report has been furnished with this proxy statement to each stockholder.
A stockholder may also request a copy of our 2018 Annual Report by writing to our Corporate Secretary at 77 Rio
Robles, San Jose, California 95134. Upon receipt of such request, we will provide a copy of our 2018 Annual Report
without charge, including the financial statements required to be filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 13a-1 of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the ‘‘Exchange Act’’) for our fiscal 2018. Our 2018 Annual Report is also available
on our website at http://investors.sunpower.com/sec.cfm.

Record Date and Shares Outstanding

Stockholders who owned shares of our common stock, par value $0.001 per share, at the close of business on
March 21, 2019, which we refer to as the Record Date, are entitled to notice of, and to vote at, the Annual Meeting.
On the Record Date, we had 142,372,724 shares of common stock outstanding. For more information about beneficial
ownership of our issued and outstanding common stock, please see ‘‘Security Ownership of Management and Certain
Beneficial Owners.’’

Board Recommendations

Our Board recommends that you vote:

‘‘FOR’’ Proposal One: re-election of each of the nominated Class II directors;

‘‘FOR’’ Proposal Two: the approval, on an advisory basis, of the compensation of our named executive
officers; and

‘‘FOR’’ Proposal Three: the ratification of the appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as our independent
registered public accounting firm for fiscal year 2019.

•

•

•

Voting

Each holder of shares of common stock is entitled to one vote for each share of common stock held as of the
Record Date. Cumulating votes is not permitted under our Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the ‘‘Certificate of
Incorporation’’).

Many of our stockholders hold their shares through a stockbroker, bank, or other nominee, rather than directly
in his or her own name. As summarized below, there are distinctions between shares held of record and those
beneficially owned.

Stockholder of Record. If your shares are registered directly in your name with our transfer agent,
Computershare Trust Company N.A., you are considered, with respect to those shares, the stockholder of record and
these proxy solicitation materials are being furnished to you directly by us.

Beneficial Owner. If your shares are held in a stock brokerage account, or by a bank or other nominee (also
known as shares registered in ‘‘street name’’), you are considered the beneficial owner of such shares held in street
name, and these proxy solicitation materials are being furnished to you by your broker, bank, or other nominee, who
is considered, with respect to those shares, the stockholder of record. As the beneficial owner, you have the right to
direct your broker, bank, or other nominee how to vote your shares, or to vote your shares during the Annual Meeting.

2

How to Vote. If you hold shares directly as a stockholder of record, you can vote in one of the following four ways:

(1) Vote via the Internet before the Meeting Date. Go to www.proxyvote.com to transmit your voting
instructions and for electronic delivery of information up until 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on May 15, 2019.
Have your Notice of Internet Availability or proxy card in hand when you access the website and then
follow the instructions.

(2) Vote by Telephone at 1-800-690-6903 before the Meeting Date. Use a touch-tone telephone to transmit your
voting instructions up until 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on May 15, 2019. Have your Notice of Internet
Availability or proxy card in hand when you call and then follow the instructions. This number is toll free
in the United States and Canada.

(3) Vote by Mail before the Meeting Date. Mark, sign, and date your proxy card and return it in the
postage-paid envelope we have provided, or return the proxy card to Vote Processing, c/o Broadridge,
51 Mercedes Way, Edgewood, New York 11717.

(4) Vote via the Internet during the Annual Meeting. You may attend the Annual Meeting on May 16, 2019 at
9:00 a.m. Pacific Time via the Internet at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SPWR2019 and vote during
the Annual Meeting. Have your Notice of Internet Availability or proxy card in hand when you access the
website and then follow the instructions.

If you hold shares beneficially in street name, you may submit your voting instructions in the manner prescribed
by your broker, bank, or other nominee by following the instructions provided by your broker, bank, or other
nominee, or you may vote your shares during the Annual Meeting.

Even if you plan to attend the Annual Meeting, we recommend that you vote your shares in advance as described in

options (1), (2), and (3) above so that your vote will be counted if you later decide not to attend the Annual Meeting.

Quorum. A quorum, which is the holders of at least a majority of shares of our stock issued and outstanding and
entitled to vote as of the Record Date, is required to be present in person or by proxy at the Annual Meeting in order
to hold the Annual Meeting and to conduct business. Your shares will be counted as being present at the Annual
Meeting if you attend the Annual Meeting (and are the stockholder of record for your shares), if you vote your shares
by telephone or over the Internet, or if you submit a properly executed proxy card. Abstentions and ‘‘broker
non-votes’’ are counted as present and entitled to vote for purposes of determining a quorum. Votes against a
particular proposal will also be counted both to determine the presence or absence of a quorum and to determine
whether the requisite number of voting shares has been obtained.

Explanation of Broker Non-Votes and Abstentions. A ‘‘broker non-vote’’ occurs when a broker or other
nominee holding shares for a beneficial owner does not vote on a particular proposal because the broker does not have
discretionary voting power with respect to that item and has not received instructions from the beneficial owner. The
rules of The New York Stock Exchange (which in this instance also apply to companies listed on The Nasdaq Global
Select Market) prohibit brokers from voting in their discretion on any non-routine proposals without instructions from
the beneficial owners. If you do not instruct your broker how to vote on a non-routine proposal, your broker will not
vote for you. Abstentions are deemed to be entitled to vote for purposes of determining whether stockholder approval
of that matter has been obtained, and they would be included in the tabulation of voting results as votes against the
proposal.

Votes Required/Treatment of Broker Non-Votes and Abstentions.

Proposal One−Re-election of Class II Directors. Election of a director requires the affirmative vote of the holders
of a plurality of votes represented by the shares in attendance or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting and
entitled to vote on the election of directors. The three persons receiving the greatest number of votes at the Annual
Meeting shall be elected as Class II directors. Neither ‘‘broker non-votes’’ nor abstentions will affect the outcome of
the voting on Proposal One.

Proposal Two−Advisory Vote on Named Executive Officer Compensation. The non-binding advisory vote on named
executive officer compensation requires the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of our stock having voting power
and in attendance or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting. ‘‘Broker non-votes’’ have no effect and will not be
counted towards the vote total for this proposal. Abstentions will have the effect of votes against Proposal Two.

3

Proposal Three−Ratification of the Appointment of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm for Fiscal
Year 2019. Ratification of the appointment of our independent registered public accounting firm requires the
affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of our stock having voting power and in attendance or represented by
proxy at the Annual Meeting. We do not expect ‘‘broker non-votes’’ since this proposal is considered to be a routine
proposal and brokers have discretionary authority to vote on this proposal. Abstentions will have the effect of votes
against Proposal Three.

How Your Proxy Will Be Voted

If you complete and submit your proxy card or vote via the Internet or by telephone, the shares represented by
your proxy will be voted at the Annual Meeting in accordance with your instructions. If you submit your proxy card
by mail, but do not fill out the voting instructions on the proxy card, the shares represented by your proxy will be
voted in favor of each of the three proposals. In addition, if any other matters properly come before the Annual
Meeting, it is the intention of the persons named in the enclosed proxy card to vote the shares they represent as
directed by the Board. We have not received notice of any other matters that may properly be presented at the Annual
Meeting.

Revoking Your Proxy

You may revoke your proxy at any time before the Meeting Date by: (1) submitting a later-dated vote by
telephone, by mail, or via the Internet before or at the Annual Meeting; or (2) delivering instructions to us at 77 Rio
Robles, San Jose, California 95134 to the attention of our Corporate Secretary. Any notice of revocation sent to us
must include the stockholder’s name and must be actually received by us before the Annual Meeting to be effective.
Your attendance at the Annual Meeting after having executed and delivered a valid proxy card or vote via the Internet
or by telephone will not in and of itself constitute a revocation of your proxy. If you are the stockholder of record
or if your shares are held in ‘‘street name,’’ you may revoke your proxy by voting electronically at the Annual
Meeting.

Solicitation of Proxies

We will pay for the cost of this proxy solicitation. We may reimburse brokerage firms and other persons
representing beneficial owners of shares for their expenses in forwarding or furnishing proxy solicitation materials
to such beneficial owners. Proxies may also be solicited personally or by telephone, telegram, or facsimile by certain
of our directors, officers, and regular employees, without additional compensation.

Voting Results

We will announce preliminary voting results at the Annual Meeting and publish final results on a Current Report

on Form 8-K, which we intend to file with the SEC within four business days after the Meeting Date.

4

Note Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

Certain of the statements contained in this proxy statement are ‘‘forward-looking statements’’ within the meaning
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are statements that do not
represent historical facts and the assumptions underlying such statements. We use words such as ‘‘anticipate,’’
‘‘believe,’’ ‘‘continue,’’ ‘‘could,’’ ‘‘estimate,’’ ‘‘expect,’’ ‘‘intend,’’ ‘‘may,’’ ‘‘plan,’’ ‘‘predict,’’ ‘‘project,’’ ‘‘potential,’’
‘‘will,’’ ‘‘would,’’ ‘‘should,’’ and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking
statements in this proxy statement include, but are not limited to, our plans and expectations regarding future
financial results, expected operating results, business strategies, the sufficiency of our cash and our liquidity,
projected costs and cost reduction measures, development of new products and improvements to our existing
products, the impact of recently adopted accounting pronouncements, our manufacturing capacity and manufacturing
costs, the adequacy of our agreements with our suppliers, our ability to monetize our solar projects, legislative
actions and regulatory compliance, competitive positions, management’s plans and objectives for future operations,
our ability to obtain financing, our ability to comply with debt covenants or cure any defaults, our ability to repay
our obligations as they come due, our ability to continue as a going concern, our ability to complete certain strategic
transactions, trends in average selling prices, the success of our joint ventures and acquisitions, expected capital
expenditures, warranty matters, outcomes of litigation, our exposure to foreign exchange, interest and credit risk,
general business and economic conditions in our markets, industry trends, the impact of changes in government
incentives, expected restructuring charges, risks related to privacy and data security, and the likelihood of any
impairment of project assets, long-lived assets, and investments. These forward-looking statements are based on
information available to us as of the date of this proxy statement and our current expectations, forecasts, and
assumptions and involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those anticipated by these forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include a variety of factors, some
of which are beyond our control. All of the forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by reference to
the factors discussed in Part I, Item 1A, ‘‘Risk Factors,’’ and elsewhere in our 2018 Annual Report, which
accompanies this proxy statement. Please see these and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (‘‘SEC’’) for additional information on risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ.
These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date, and
we are under no obligation to, and expressly disclaim any responsibility to, update or alter our forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

WHETHER OR NOT YOU EXPECT TO ATTEND THE ANNUAL MEETING, YOU ARE
REQUESTED TO COMPLETE, DATE, AND SIGN THE PROXY CARD AND RETURN IT PROMPTLY,
OR VOTE BY TELEPHONE OR VIA THE INTERNET BY FOLLOWING THE DIRECTIONS ON THE
PROXY CARD. STOCKHOLDERS WHO ATTEND THE ANNUAL MEETING MAY REVOKE A PRIOR
PROXY VOTE AND VOTE THEIR SHARES AS SET FORTH IN THIS PROXY STATEMENT.

5

PROPOSAL ONE

RE-ELECTION OF CLASS II DIRECTORS

Our Board is currently composed of nine directors and divided into three classes, in accordance with Article IV,
Section B of our Certificate of Incorporation. Only the terms of the three directors serving as Class II directors are
scheduled to expire in 2019. The terms of other directors expire in subsequent years.

On April 28, 2011, we and Total Solar International SAS, formerly known as Total Energies Nouvelles Activités
USA, SAS and as Total Gas & Power USA, SAS (‘‘Total’’), a subsidiary of Total S.A. (‘‘Total S.A.’’), entered into
a Tender Offer Agreement (the ‘‘Tender Offer Agreement’’). Pursuant to the Tender Offer Agreement, on June 21,
2011, Total purchased in a cash tender offer approximately 60% of our then outstanding shares of common stock (the
‘‘Tender Offer’’). In connection with the Tender Offer, we and Total entered into an Affiliation Agreement that
governs the relationship between Total and us following the close of the Tender Offer (the ‘‘Affiliation Agreement’’).
In accordance with the terms of the Affiliation Agreement, our Board has nine members, composed of our chief
executive officer, three non-Total-designated members of the Board, and five directors designated by Total. If the
ownership of our voting power by Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., declines below certain
thresholds, the number of members of the Board that Total is entitled to designate will be reduced as set forth in the
Affiliation Agreement. See ‘‘Certain Relationships and Related Persons Transactions—Agreements with Total Solar
International SAS and Total S.A.—Affiliation Agreement.’’

The Board has considered and approved the nomination of Catherine Lesjak, Ladislas Paszkiewicz, and Julien
Pouget, our current Class II directors, for re-election as directors at the Annual Meeting. Ms. Lesjak is an independent
director. Messrs. Paszkiewicz and Pouget are Total-designated directors. Each nominee has consented to being named
in this proxy statement and to serve if re-elected. Unless otherwise directed, the proxy holders will vote the proxies
received by them for the three nominees named herein. If any nominee is unable or declines to serve as a director
at the time of the Annual Meeting, the proxies will be voted for any nominee who is designated by the present Board
to fill the vacancy. We do not expect that any nominee will be unable or will decline to serve as a director. The Class II
directors elected will hold office until the annual meeting of stockholders in 2022 or until their successors are elected.

The Class I group of directors consists of François Badoual, Antoine Larenaudie, and Patrick Wood III, who will
hold office until the annual meeting of stockholders in 2021 or until their successors are elected. Messrs. Badoual and
Larenaudie are Total-designated directors. Mr. Wood is an independent director. The Class III group of directors
consists of Helle Kristoffersen, Thomas McDaniel, and Thomas Werner, who will hold office until the annual meeting
of stockholders in 2020 or until their successors are elected. Ms. Kristoffersen is a Total-designated director.
Mr. McDaniel is an independent director. Mr. Werner is our Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board.

Additional information about the Class II director nominees for re-election, and the Class I and Class III

directors, is set forth below.

Class II Directors Nominated for Re-Election at the Annual Meeting

Name

Catherine Lesjak

Ladislas Paszkiewicz

Julien Pouget

Age

60

56

42

Position(s) with
SunPower

Director

Director

Director

Director
Since

2013

2016

2017

Catherine Lesjak retired from HP Inc. on February 28, 2019 and was the Interim Chief Operating Officer of
HP Inc. from July 1, 2018 until January 1, 2019. She served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
of HP Inc. (formerly Hewlett-Packard Company) (HP) from January 1, 2007 until July 1, 2018. Ms. Lesjak served
as interim Chief Executive Officer of HP from August 2010 through October 2010. As a 32-year veteran at HP,
Ms. Lesjak held a broad range of financial leadership roles across HP. Before being named as Chief Financial Officer,
Ms. Lesjak served as Senior Vice President and Treasurer, responsible for managing HP’s worldwide cash, debt,
foreign exchange, capital structure, risk management, and benefits plan administration. Earlier in her career at HP,
she managed financial operations for Enterprise Marketing and Solutions and the Software Global Business Unit.

6

Before that, she was group controller for HP’s Software Solutions Organization and managed HP’s global channel
credit risk as controller and credit manager for the Commercial Customer Organization. Ms. Lesjak has a bachelor’s
degree in biology from Stanford University and a master of business degree in finance from the University of
California, Berkeley.

Ms. Lesjak’s extensive experience as the chief financial officer of a major corporation, with significant presence
in both the business-to-consumer and business-to-business markets, allows her to make significant contributions to
our strategic business planning and execution. Her background is also valuable in terms of financial oversight and
review of our strategic investments. It is based on the Board’s identification of these qualifications, skills, and
experience that the Board has concluded that Ms. Lesjak should serve as a director on our Board.

Ladislas Paszkiewicz has served as Senior Vice President, Strategy and Climate, for Total S.A. since September
2016. He previously served as Senior Vice President of Mergers and Acquisitions for Total S.A. from 2015 to 2016.
From 2010 to 2014, he was Senior Vice President, Americas, for the Exploration and Production division of Total
S.A. Prior to that, he served as Senior Vice President, Middle East, for the same division from 2007 to 2010.
Mr. Paszkiewicz has also served as General Manager of the Total group’s subsidiary in Argentina, as head of the
Investor Relations Department of Total S.A., and in various other positions in the Total group, which he joined in
1985. Mr. Paszkiewicz holds a master’s degree in business administration from New York University and a master’s
degree in finance from the Insitut d’Etudes Politiques in Paris, France.

Mr. Paszkiewicz brings significant international strategic and business development experience to the Board. His
extensive experience in the energy industry gives him a valuable perspective on the development of our strategy
going forward. It is based on the Board’s identification of these qualifications, skills, and experience that the Board
has concluded that Mr. Paszkiewicz should serve as a director on our Board.

Julien Pouget has served as Senior Vice President of the Renewables division of Total S.A. since January 1,
2017. From 2014 to 2016, he served as a senior advisor to the President of France, initially responsible for industry,
then industry and digital, and finally for the economy. His responsibilities during this time included the restructuring
of the French nuclear industry. Prior to his service to the president, Mr. Pouget spent six years in various positions
at Alstom Power, including as Vice President of the heat exchangers product line for France, Switzerland, and China,
as Vice President and General Manager of Asian activities, and as project leader and head of engineering for the heat
exchangers on the Flamanville 3 EPR nuclear plant in France. From 2001 to 2008, Mr. Pouget held various positions
in the French Ministry of Industry, and at the state shareholding agency at the French Ministry for Finance and
Economy. Mr. Pouget is a chief engineer of the prestigious French Corps de Mines and a graduate of the École
Polytechnique.

Mr. Pouget brings significant international managerial and operational experience to the Board. His extensive
experience in the energy industry and in government gives him a valuable perspective on policy and the global energy
marketplace. It is based on the Board’s identification of these qualifications, skills, and experience that the Board has
concluded that Mr. Pouget should serve as a director on our Board.

Class I Directors with Terms Expiring in 2021

Name

François Badoual

Antoine Larenaudie

Patrick Wood III

Age

54

60

56

Position(s) with
SunPower

Director

Director

Director

Director
Since

2017

2017

2005

François Badoual has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Total New Energies Ventures, Inc.
since August 2017. From 2012 to 2017, he served as Chief Executive Officer of Total Energy Ventures, the corporate
venture capital arm for the Total Group. Mr. Badoual also previously served as General Manager and Country
Chairman for Total Exploration and Production − Algeria from 2009 to 2012, and as Deputy General Manager for
Total Exploration and Production − Angola from 2006 to 2009. Mr. Badoual has held various other positions in the
Total Group since 1990, and he has worked in France, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. Mr. Badoual
holds a degree in civil engineering from École Nationale des Travaux Publics de l’État and an Advanced Master in
Regional and Urban Planning from École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées.

7

Mr. Badoual brings significant international managerial and operational experience to the Board. His extensive
experience in the energy industry gives him a valuable perspective on our efforts to manage our business and project
development activities. It is based on the Board’s identification of these qualifications, skills, and experience that the
Board has concluded that Mr. Badoual should serve as a director on our Board.

Antoine Larenaudie has served as Treasurer of the Total Group since September 2017. Before that, he served
as Chief Financial Officer of Total’s Gas, Renewables, and Power division and Trading and Shipping division from
2002 to 2017. Mr. Larenaudie has held various other positions in the Total Group since 1990, and he has also worked
for Credit Lyonnais Bank in France and London in various positions dealing with international corporations and
commodities trading firms. He is a graduate of the École Supérieure de Commerce de Toulouse.

Mr. Larenaudie brings significant international financial management experience to the Board. His extensive
experience in the energy industry gives him a valuable perspective on our financial strategy going forward. It is based
on the Board’s identification of these qualifications, skills, and experience that the Board has concluded that
Mr. Larenaudie should serve as a director on our Board.

Pat Wood III has served as President of Hunt Energy Enterprises BEE Network, an energy storage development
company, since February 2019, and as a Principal of Wood3 Resources, an energy infrastructure developer, since July
2005. He is active in the development of electric power and natural gas infrastructure assets in North America. From
2001 to 2005, Mr. Wood served as the Chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. From 1995 to 2001,
he chaired the Public Utility Commission of Texas. Mr. Wood has also been an attorney with Baker & Botts, a global
law firm, and an associate project engineer with Arco Indonesia, an oil and gas company, in Jakarta. He currently
serves as a director of Quanta Services, Inc. Mr. Wood is a past Board Chairman of Dynegy, a past director of
Memorial Resource Development, Inc. and TPI Composites, a former director of the American Council on
Renewable Energy, and a member of the National Petroleum Council.

Mr. Wood brings significant strategic and operational management experience to the Board. Mr. Wood has
demonstrated strong leadership skills through a decade of regulatory leadership in the energy sector. Mr. Wood brings
a unique perspective and extensive knowledge of energy project development, public policy development,
governance, and the regulatory process. His legal background also provides the Board with a perspective on the legal
implications of matters affecting our business. It is based on the Board’s identification of these qualifications, skills,
and experience that the Board has concluded that Mr. Wood should serve as a director on our Board, Chairman of
the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, and Chairman of the Compensation Committee.

Class III Directors with Terms Expiring in 2020

Name

Helle Kristoffersen

Thomas McDaniel

Thomas Werner

Age

54

69

59

Position(s) with
SunPower

Director

Director

Chief Executive
Officer, Director, and
Chairman of the Board

Director
Since

2016

2009

2003

Helle Kristoffersen has served as Senior Vice President, Strategy and Corporate Affairs, of the Gas, Renewables,
and Power segment for Total S.A. since September 2016. From January 2012 to August 2016, she was Senior Vice
President, Strategy and Business Intelligence, at the group level of Total S.A. Prior to that, she served as Deputy Vice
President of the same department since January 2011. In 1994, she joined Alcatel, where she spent 16 years and
served in particular as Vice President, Corporate Strategy, of Alcatel and subsequently Alcatel-Lucent. She currently
serves as a director of Orange, PSA Group (Peugeot), and Direct Energie. Ms. Kristoffersen served as a director of
Valeo from 2007 to 2013. Ms. Kristoffersen is a graduate of the École Normale Supérieure and the Paris Graduate
School of Economics, Statistics, and Finance (ENSAE). Ms. Kristoffersen also holds a master’s degree in
econometrics from Université Paris 1.

Ms. Kristoffersen brings significant international strategic and business development experience to the Board.
Her extensive experience in the energy and technology industries, including her service on the boards of directors of

8

several
international, publicly listed companies, gives her a valuable perspective on our role in the global
marketplace. It is based on the Board’s identification of these qualifications, skills, and experience that the Board has
concluded that Ms. Kristoffersen should serve as a director on our Board.

Thomas McDaniel was Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, and Treasurer of Edison International,
a generator and distributor of electric power and investor in infrastructure and energy assets, before retiring in July
2008 after 37 years of service. Before January 2005, Mr. McDaniel was Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, and
President of Edison Mission Energy, a power generation business specializing in the development, acquisition,
construction, management, and operation of power production facilities. Mr. McDaniel was also Chief Executive
Officer and a director of Edison Capital, a provider of capital and financial services supporting the growth of energy
and infrastructure projects, products, and services, both domestically and internationally. Mr. McDaniel has served
on our Board since February 2009. He is Chairman of the board of directors of SemGroup, L.P., a midstream energy
services company. Mr. McDaniel also served on the advisory board of Cypress Envirosystems, which develops and
markets energy efficiency products, and On Ramp Wireless, a communications company serving electrical, gas, and
water utilities. Mr. McDaniel formerly served on the board of directors of the Senior Care Action Network (SCAN)
from 2000 to 2013 and Aquion Energy, a manufacturer of energy storage systems. Through the McDaniel Family
Foundation, he is also actively involved in a variety of charitable activities, such as the Boys and Girls Club of
Huntington Beach, Heifer International, and the Free Wheelchair Mission.

Mr. McDaniel brings significant operational and development experience, including extensive experience
growing and operating global electric power businesses, to the Board. In addition, Mr. McDaniel’s prior experience
as a chief financial officer qualifies him as a financial expert, which is relevant to his duties as an Audit Committee
member. It is based on the Board’s identification of these qualifications, skills, and experience that the Board has
concluded that Mr. McDaniel should serve as a director on our Board, Chairman of the Audit Committee, and
Chairman of the Finance Committee.

Thomas Werner has served as our Chief Executive Officer, and as a member of our Board, since June 2003, and
Chairman of the Board since May 2011. Before joining SunPower, he held the position of Chief Executive Officer
of Silicon Light Machines, Inc., an optical solutions subsidiary of Cypress Semiconductor Corporation, from 2001
to 2003. From 1998 to 2001, Mr. Werner served as Vice President and General Manager of the Business Connectivity
Group of 3Com Corp., a network solutions company. He has also held a number of executive management positions
at Oak Industries, Inc. and General Electric Co. Mr. Werner currently serves as a board member of Cree, Inc., a LED
manufacturer, and the Silicon Valley Leadership Group. He served as a member of the board of directors of Silver
Spring Networks, a provider of smart grid applications, from March 2009 to January 2018. He is also on the board
of trustees of Marquette University. Mr. Werner holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from the
University of Wisconsin–Madison, a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Marquette University, and a
master’s degree in business administration from George Washington University.

Mr. Werner brings significant leadership, technical, operational, and financial management experience to the
Board. Mr. Werner provides the Board with valuable insight into management’s perspective with respect to our
operations. Mr. Werner has demonstrated strong executive leadership skills through nearly 20 years of executive
officer service with various companies and brings the most comprehensive view of our operational history over the
past several years. Mr. Werner also brings to the Board leadership experience through his service on the board of
directors for two other organizations, which gives him the ability to compare the way in which management and the
boards operate within the companies he serves. It is based on the Board’s identification of these qualifications, skills,
and experience that the Board has concluded that Mr. Werner should serve as a director on our Board and Chairman
of the Board.

Vote Required

Election of a director requires the affirmative vote of the holders of a plurality of votes represented by the shares
in attendance or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting and entitled to vote on the election of directors. The
three persons receiving the greatest number of votes at the Annual Meeting shall be elected as Class II directors.
Neither ‘‘broker non-votes’’ nor abstentions will affect the outcome of the voting on this proposal.

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS RECOMMENDS A VOTE ‘‘FOR’’ THE ELECTION TO THE BOARD

OF EACH OF THE CLASS II DIRECTOR NOMINEES.

9

BOARD STRUCTURE

Determination of Independence

Our Board has determined that three of our nine directors, namely Ms. Lesjak and Messrs. McDaniel and Wood,
each meet the standards for independence as defined by applicable listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market and
rules and regulations of the SEC. Our Board has also determined that Mr. Werner, our Chief Executive Officer and
Chairman of the Board, and Ms. Kristoffersen and Messrs. Badoual, Larenaudie, Paszkiewicz, and Pouget, as
directors designated by our controlling stockholder, Total, pursuant to our Affiliation Agreement with Total, are not
‘‘independent’’ as defined by applicable listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market. There are no family
relationships among any of our directors or executive officers.

Leadership Structure and Risk Oversight

The Board has determined that having a lead independent director assist Mr. Werner, the Chief Executive Officer
and Chairman of the Board, is in the best interest of our stockholders. Mr. Wood has served as the lead independent
director of the Board since June 2012. The Board believes this structure ensures a greater role for the independent
directors in the oversight of our company and encourages active participation of the independent directors in setting
agendas and establishing priorities and procedures for the work of the Board. We believe that this leadership structure
also is preferred by a significant number of our stockholders.

The Board is actively involved in oversight of risks that could affect our company. This oversight is conducted
primarily through committees of the Board, in particular our Audit Committee, as disclosed in the descriptions of
each of the committees below and in the respective charters of each committee. The full Board, however, has retained
responsibility for general oversight of risks. The Board satisfies this responsibility through full reports by each
committee chair regarding the committee’s considerations and actions, as well as through regular reports directly
from our officers responsible for oversight of particular risks within our company.

Board Meetings

Our Board held four regular, quarterly meetings, one annual meeting, and 10 special meetings during fiscal
2018. During fiscal 2018, each director attended at least 75% of the aggregate number of meetings of the Board and
its committees on which such director served during his or her term, with the exception of Ladislas Paszkiewicz. The
average attendance rate at Board meetings held during fiscal 2018 was 86%. The average attendance rate at Board
committee meetings held during fiscal 2018 was 96%. Our independent directors held four meetings with
management present, as well as four executive sessions during regular, quarterly meetings and two executive sessions
during special meetings without management present, during fiscal 2018.

Controlled Company, Nasdaq Listing Standards

Since the Tender Offer in June 2011 (including as of April 5, 2019), Total has owned greater than 50% of our
outstanding voting securities and we are therefore considered a ‘‘controlled company’’ within the meaning of The
Nasdaq Stock Market rules. As long as we remain a ‘‘controlled company,’’ we are exempt from the rules that would
otherwise require that our Board be composed of a majority of independent directors and that our Compensation
Committee and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee be composed entirely of independent directors.
This ‘‘controlled company’’ exception does not modify the independence requirements for the Audit Committee, and
we comply with the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and The Nasdaq Stock Market rules that require that our
Audit Committee be composed exclusively of independent directors.

Board Committees

We believe that good corporate governance is important to ensure that we are managed for the long-term benefit of
our stockholders. Our Board has established committees to ensure that we maintain strong corporate governance standards.
Our Board has standing Audit, Compensation, and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committees. Prior to and during
fiscal year 2018, our Board also had a Finance Committee, which was dissolved by the Board on February 7, 2019.
Additionally, the Board has in the past established, and may in the future establish, ad hoc committees to assist the Board
in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities. The charters of our Audit, Compensation, and Nominating and Corporate

10

Governance Committees are available on our website at http://investors.sunpower.com. You may also request copies of our
committee charters free of charge by writing to SunPower Corporation, 77 Rio Robles, San Jose, California 95134,
Attention: Corporate Secretary. Below is a summary of our committee structure and membership information.

Audit
Committee

Compensation
Committee

—

—

—

Member

Chair

—

—

Member

—

Member

—

—

Member

—

Member

Chair

Finance
Committee

—

Member

Member

Member

Chair

—

—

—

Nominating and
Corporate
Governance
Committee

Member

—

—

—

Member

Member

—

Chair

Director

François Badoual

Helle Kristoffersen

Antoine Larenaudie
Catherine Lesjak(I)
Thomas McDaniel(I)
Ladislas Paszkiewicz

Julien Pouget
Pat Wood III(I)(*)

(I)

(*)

Indicates an independent director.

Indicates the lead independent director.

Audit Committee

Mr. McDaniel is the Chairman of the Audit Committee, appointed in June 2012. Our Audit Committee is a
separately-designated standing committee established in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Exchange Act.
The Board has determined that each member of our Audit Committee is ‘‘independent’’ as that term is defined in
Section 10A of the Exchange Act and as defined by applicable listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market. Each
member of the Audit Committee is financially literate and has the financial sophistication required by the applicable
listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market. The Board has determined that each of Ms. Lesjak and Mr. McDaniel
meet the criteria of an ‘‘audit committee financial expert’’ within the meaning of applicable SEC regulations due to
their professional experience. Mr. McDaniel’s and Ms. Lesjak’s relevant professional experience is described above
under ‘‘Proposal One—Re-Election of Class II Directors.’’ The Audit Committee held nine meetings during fiscal
2018.

The purpose of the Audit Committee, pursuant to its charter, is, among other things, to:

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

provide oversight of our accounting and financial reporting processes and the audit of our financial
statements and internal controls by our independent registered public accounting firm;

assist the Board in the oversight of: (1) the integrity of our financial statements; (2) our compliance with
legal and regulatory requirements; (3) the independent registered public accounting firm’s performance,
qualifications, and independence; and (4) the performance of our internal audit function;

oversee management’s identification, evaluation, and mitigation of major risks to our company;

prepare an audit committee report as required by the SEC to be included in our annual proxy statement;

provide to the Board such information and materials as it may deem necessary to make the Board aware
of financial matters requiring the attention of the Board;

consider questions of actual and potential conflicts of interest (including corporate opportunities) of Board
members and corporate officers and review and approve proposed related party transactions that would be
required to be disclosed under Item 404 of Regulation S-K, provided that any approval of related party
transactions may be made only by the disinterested members of the Audit Committee; and

oversee any waiver of the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics for directors and executive officers.

The Audit Committee also serves as the representative of the Board with respect to its oversight of the matters
described below in the ‘‘Audit Committee Report.’’ The Audit Committee has established procedures for (1) the

11

receipt, retention, and treatment of complaints received by us regarding accounting, internal accounting controls, or
auditing matters, and (2) the confidential, anonymous submission by our employees of concerns regarding accounting
or auditing matters. The Audit Committee promptly reviews such complaints and concerns.1

Compensation Committee

Mr. Wood is the Chairman of the Compensation Committee, appointed in November 2012. Two of the four
members of the Compensation Committee, Messrs. McDaniel and Wood, are ‘‘independent’’ as defined by applicable
listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market. Ms. Kristoffersen and Mr. Pouget were designated by Total to be on
the Compensation Committee pursuant to our Affiliation Agreement with Total and are not ‘‘independent’’ as defined
by applicable listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market. The Compensation Committee held seven meetings
during fiscal 2018.

The Compensation Committee, pursuant to its charter, assists the Board in discharging its duties with respect to:

•

•

•

•

•

the formulation, implementation, review, and modification of the compensation of our directors and
executive officers;

the review and preparation of an annual report of the Compensation Committee for inclusion in our annual
proxy statement or Annual Report on Form 10-K, in accordance with applicable rules of the SEC and
applicable listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market;

the review and discussion with management of the Compensation Discussion and Analysis section of our
annual proxy statement or Annual Report on Form 10-K;

oversight of our company compensation philosophy, which may be performance-based, to reward and
retain employees based on achievement of goals; and

the administration of our equity incentive plans, including the SunPower Corporation 2015 Omnibus
Incentive Plan.

We also have a Section 16 Subcommittee of the Compensation Committee consisting solely of independent
directors available to approve certain compensation matters in accordance with Rule 16b-3 of the Exchange Act, as
recommended by the Compensation Committee. This subcommittee historically also reviewed and approved certain
compensation matters in accordance with Section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the
‘‘Code’’).

In certain instances, the Compensation Committee has delegated limited authority to Mr. Werner, in his capacity
as a Board member, with respect to compensation and equity awards for employees other than our executive officers.
For more information on our processes and procedures for the consideration and determination of executive
compensation, see ‘‘Compensation Discussion and Analysis’’ below.

Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation

No member of our Compensation Committee was at any time during fiscal 2018 one of our officers or
employees, or is one of our former officers or employees. No member of our Compensation Committee had any
relationship requiring disclosure under Item 404 and Item 407(e)(4) of Regulation S-K. Additionally, during fiscal
2018, none of our executive officers or directors was a member of the board of directors, or any committee of the
board of directors, or of any other entity such that the relationship would be construed to constitute a compensation
committee interlock within the meaning of the rules and regulations of the SEC.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee

Mr. Wood is the Chairman of our Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Two of the four members
of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, Messrs. McDaniel and Wood, are ‘‘independent’’ as
defined by applicable listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market. Messrs. Badoual and Paszkiewicz were
designated by Total to be on the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee pursuant to our Affiliation
Agreement with Total and are not ‘‘independent’’ as defined by applicable listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock
Market. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee held four meetings during fiscal 2018.

1

Upon the dissolution of the Finance Committee on February 7, 2019, a portion of the Finance Committee’s oversight responsibilities
(including oversight responsibility for certain treasury, financial risk review, insurance review, and other matters) was allocated to the Audit
Committee.

12

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, pursuant to its charter, assists the Board in discharging

its responsibilities with respect to:

•

•

•

the identification of individuals qualified to become directors and the selection or recommendation of
candidates for all directorships to be filled by the Board or by the stockholders;

the evaluation of whether an incumbent director should be nominated for re-election to the Board upon
expiration of such director’s term, based upon factors established for new director candidates as well as the
incumbent director’s qualifications, performance as a Board member, and such other factors as the
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee deems appropriate; and

the development, maintenance, and recommendation of a set of corporate governance principles applicable
to us, and periodically reviewing such principles.

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee also considers diversity in identifying nominees for
directors. In particular, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee believes that the members of the Board
should reflect a diverse range of talent, skill, and expertise sufficient to provide sound and prudent guidance with
respect to our operations and interests. In addition, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee has
determined that the Board as a whole must have the right diversity, mix of characteristics, and skills for the optimal
functioning of the Board in its oversight role.

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee believes the Board should be composed of persons with

skills in areas such as:

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

relevant industries, especially solar products and services;

technology manufacturing;

sales and marketing;

leadership of large, complex organizations;

finance and accounting;

corporate governance and compliance;

strategic planning;

international business activities; and

human capital and compensation.

Under our Corporate Governance Principles, during the director nominee evaluation process, the Nominating

and Corporate Governance Committee and the Board take the following into account:

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

A significant number of directors on the Board should be independent directors, unless otherwise required
by applicable law or The Nasdaq Stock Market rules;

Candidates should be capable of working in a collegial manner with persons of different educational,
business, and cultural backgrounds and should possess skills and expertise that complement the attributes
of the existing directors;

Candidates should represent a diversity of viewpoints, backgrounds, experiences, and other demographics;

Candidates should demonstrate notable or significant achievement and possess senior-level business,
management, or regulatory experience that would inure to our benefit;

Candidates shall be individuals of the highest character and integrity;

Candidates shall be free from any conflict of interest that would interfere with their ability to properly
discharge their duties as a director or would violate any applicable law or regulation;

Candidates for
the Audit Committee and Compensation Committee should have the enhanced
independence and financial literacy and expertise that may be required under law or The Nasdaq Stock
Market rules;

Candidates shall be capable of devoting the necessary time to discharge their duties, taking into account
memberships on other boards and other responsibilities; and

Candidates shall have the desire to represent the interests of all stockholders.

13

Finance Committee

Mr. McDaniel was the Chairman of the Finance Committee. Two of the four former members of the Finance
Committee, Ms. Lesjak and Mr. McDaniel, are ‘‘independent’’ as defined by applicable listing standards of The
Nasdaq Stock Market. Ms. Kristoffersen and Mr. Larenaudie were designated by Total to be on the Finance
Committee pursuant to our Affiliation Agreement with Total and are not ‘‘independent’’ as defined by applicable
listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market. The Finance Committee held four meetings during fiscal 2018.
Pursuant to approval of the Board, the Finance Committee was dissolved on February 7, 2019. A portion of the
Finance Committee’s oversight responsibilities were allocated to the Audit Committee, and the remainder to the
Board.

Prior to its dissolution, the Finance Committee assisted the Board in discharging its duties with respect to:

•

•

•

•

The review, evaluation, and approval of financing transactions, including credit facilities, structured
finance, issuance of debt and equity securities in private and public transactions, sales of project assets or
ownership therein to publicly traded entities in which we have an equity interest greater than 10% or their
subsidiaries, and the repurchase of debt and equity securities (other than financing activity exceeding
$50 million, which requires the review and approval of the Board);

The review of our annual operating plan for recommendation to the Board, and the monitoring of capital
spend as compared with the annual operating plan;

The review and recommendation to the Board of investments, acquisitions, divestitures, and other corporate
transactions; and

General oversight of our treasury activities, and the review, at least annually, of our counterparty credit risk
and insurance programs.

14

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Stockholder Communications with Board

We provide a process by which stockholders may send communications to our Board, any committee of the
Board, our non-management directors, or any particular director. Stockholders can contact our non-management
directors by sending such communications to the Chairman of the Nominating and Corporate Governance
Committee, c/o Corporate Secretary, SunPower Corporation, 77 Rio Robles, San Jose, California 95134.
Stockholders wishing to communicate with a particular Board member, a particular Board committee, or the Board
as a whole may send a written communication to our Corporate Secretary, SunPower Corporation, 77 Rio Robles,
San Jose, California 95134. The Corporate Secretary will forward such communication to the full Board, to the
appropriate committee, or to any individual director or directors to whom the communication is addressed, unless the
communication is unduly hostile, threatening, illegal, or harassing, in which case the Corporate Secretary has the
authority to discard the communication or take appropriate legal action regarding the communication.

Directors’ Attendance at Our Annual Meetings

Although we do not have a formal policy that mandates the attendance of our directors at our annual stockholder
meetings, our directors are encouraged to attend. All of our directors are expected to attend the 2019 Annual Meeting,
and five of our directors attended our annual meeting of stockholders held on May 17, 2018 (the ‘‘2018 Annual
Meeting’’).

Submission of Stockholder Proposals for the 2020 Annual Meeting

As a SunPower stockholder, you may submit a proposal, including director nominations, for consideration at

future annual meetings of stockholders.

Stockholder Proposals. Only stockholders meeting certain criteria outlined in our Amended and Restated
By-Laws (the ‘‘By-Laws’’) are eligible to submit nominations for election to the Board or to propose other proper
business for consideration by stockholders at an annual meeting. Under the By-Laws, stockholders who wish to
nominate persons for election to the Board or propose other proper business for consideration by stockholders at an
annual meeting must give proper written notice to us not earlier than 120 days and not later than 90 days before the
first anniversary of the preceding year’s annual meeting, provided that in the event that an annual meeting is called
for a date that is not within 25 days before or after such anniversary date, notice by the stockholder in order to be
timely must be received not later than the close of business on the tenth day following the day on which we mail or
publicly announce our notice of the date of the annual meeting, whichever occurs first. Therefore, notices regarding
nominations of persons for election to the Board and proposals of other proper business for consideration at the 2020
annual meeting of stockholders must be submitted to us no earlier than January 17, 2020 and no later than
February 16, 2020. If the date of the 2020 annual meeting is moved more than 25 days before or after the anniversary
date of the 2019 Annual Meeting, the deadline will instead be the close of business on the tenth day following notice
of the date of the 2020 annual meeting of stockholders or public disclosure of such date, whichever occurs first. We
have discretionary power, but are not obligated, to consider stockholder proposals submitted after February 16, 2020
for the 2020 annual meeting.

Stockholder proposals will also need to comply with SEC regulations, such as Rule 14a-8 of the Exchange Act
regarding the inclusion of stockholder proposals in any Company-sponsored proxy material. In order to be included
in our proxy materials for the 2020 annual meeting of stockholders, pursuant to Rule 14a-8 of the Exchange Act the
submission deadline for stockholder proposals is December 7, 2019. All written proposals must be received by our
Corporate Secretary, at our corporate offices at 77 Rio Robles, San Jose, California 95134 by the close of business
on the required deadline in order to be considered for inclusion in our proxy materials for the 2020 annual meeting
of stockholders.

15

Nomination of Director Candidates. Our Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will consider
director candidates recommended by our stockholders. Such nominations should be directed to the Nominating and
Corporate Governance Committee, c/o Corporate Secretary, SunPower Corporation, 77 Rio Robles, San Jose,
California 95134. In addition, the stockholder must give notice of a nomination to our Corporate Secretary, and such
notice must be received within the time period described above under ‘‘Stockholder Proposals.’’ Any such proposal
must include the following:

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

the name, age, business address, residential address, and record address of such nominee;

the principal occupation or employment of such nominee;

the class or series and number of shares of our stock owned beneficially or of record by such nominee;

any information relating to the nominee that would be required to be disclosed in our proxy statement;

the nominee holder for, and number of, shares owned beneficially but not of record by such person;

whether and the extent to which any hedging or other transaction or series of transactions has been entered
into by or on behalf of, or any other agreement, arrangement, or understanding (including any derivative
or short positions, profit interests, options, or borrowed or loaned shares) has been made, the effect or intent
of which is to mitigate loss to or manage risk or benefit of share price changes for, or to increase or decrease
the voting power of, such person with respect to any share of our stock;

to the extent known by the stockholder giving the notice, the name and address of any other stockholder
supporting the nominee for election or re-election as a director on the date of such stockholder’s notice;

a description of all arrangements or understandings between or among such persons pursuant to which the
nomination(s) are to be made by the stockholder and any relationship between or among the stockholder
giving notice and any person acting in concert, directly or indirectly, with such stockholder and any person
controlling, controlled by, or under common control with such stockholder, on the one hand, and each
proposed nominee, on the other hand; and

a representation that the stockholder intends to appear in person or by proxy at the meeting to nominate the
persons named in its notice.

If a director nomination is made pursuant to the process set forth above, the Nominating and Corporate
Governance Committee will apply the same criteria in evaluating the nominee as it would any other board nominee
candidate, and will recommend to the Board whether or not the stockholder nominee should be included as a
candidate for election in our proxy statement. The nominee and nominating stockholder should be willing to provide
any information reasonably requested by the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee in connection with
its evaluation. The Board will make the final determination whether or not a nominee will be included in the proxy
statement and on the proxy card for election.

Once either a search firm selected by the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee or a stockholder
has provided our Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee with the identity of a prospective candidate, the
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee communicates the identity and known background and
experience of the candidate to the Board. If warranted by a polling of the Board, members of our Nominating and
Corporate Governance Committee and/or other members of our senior management may interview the candidate. If
the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee reacts favorably to a candidate, the candidate is next invited
to interview with the members of the Board who are not on the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.
The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee then makes a final determination whether to recommend the
candidate to the Board for directorship. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee currently has not set
specific minimum qualifications or criteria for nominees that it proposes for Board membership, but evaluates the
entirety of each candidate’s credentials. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee believes, however,
that we will be best served if our directors bring to the Board a variety of diverse experience and backgrounds and,
among other things, demonstrated integrity, executive leadership, and financial, marketing, or business knowledge
and experience. See ‘‘Board Structure—Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee’’ for factors considered
by the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and the Board in considering director nominees.

16

Corporate Governance Principles

We believe that strong corporate governance practices are the foundation of a successful, well-run company. The
Board has adopted Corporate Governance Principles that set forth our core corporate governance principles,
including:

•

•

•

•

•

•

oversight responsibilities of the Board;

election and responsibilities of the lead independent director;

role of Board committees and assignment and rotation of members;

review of the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and consideration of related party transactions;

independent director meetings without management and with outside auditors;

Board’s access to employees;

•

annual review of director compensation;
• membership criteria and selection of the Board;
•

annual review of Board performance;

•

•

•

•

director orientation and continuing education;

stock ownership guidelines for certain of our executive officers and directors;

annual review of performance and compensation of executive officers; and

succession planning for key executive officers.

Our Corporate Governance Principles are available on our website at http://investors.sunpower.com.

Code of Business Conduct and Ethics; Related Persons Transactions Policy and Procedures

It is our general policy to conduct our business activities and transactions with the highest level of integrity and
ethical standards and in accordance with all applicable laws. In addition, it is our policy to avoid situations that create
an actual or potential conflict between our interests and the personal interests of our officers and directors. Such
principles are described in our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, which was revised on December 19, 2018. Our
Code of Business Conduct and Ethics is applicable to our directors, officers, and employees (including our principal
executive officer, principal financial officer, and principal accounting officer) and is designed to promote compliance
with the laws applicable to our business, accounting standards, and proper and ethical business methods and
at
practices. Our Code
http://investors.sunpower.com/corporate-governance.cfm under the link for ‘‘Code of Conduct.’’ You may also
request a copy by writing to us at SunPower Corporation, 77 Rio Robles, San Jose, California 95134, Attention:
Corporate Secretary. If we amend our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics or grant a waiver applicable to our
principal executive officer, principal financial officer, or principal accounting officer, we will post a copy of such
amendment or waiver on our website. Under our Corporate Governance Principles, the Audit Committee is
responsible for reviewing and recommending changes to our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics.

of Business Conduct

our website

available

Ethics

and

on

is

Pursuant to our Corporate Governance Principles and the charter of our Audit Committee, our Audit Committee
will consider questions of actual and potential conflicts of interest (including corporate opportunities) of directors and
officers and approve or prohibit such transactions. The Audit Committee will review and approve in advance all
proposed related party transactions that would be required to be disclosed under Item 404 of Regulation S-K, in
compliance with the applicable Nasdaq Stock Market rules. A related party transaction will only be approved if the
Audit Committee determines that it is in our best interests. If a director is involved in the transaction, he or she will
be recused from all voting and approval processes in connection with the transaction.

17

Certain Relationships and Related Persons Transactions

Other than the compensation agreements and other arrangements described herein, and the transactions
described below, since the start of our last fiscal year on January 1, 2018, there has not been, nor is there currently
proposed, any transaction or series of similar transactions to which we have been or will be a party:

•

•

in which the amount involved exceeded or will exceed $120,000; and

in which any director, director nominee, executive officer, beneficial owner of more than 5% of any class
of our common stock, or any immediate family member of such persons had or will have a direct or indirect
material interest.

Agreements with Total and Total S.A.

Amended and Restated Credit Support Agreement

We and Total S.A. entered into an Amended and Restated Credit Support Agreement (the ‘‘Credit Support
Agreement’’) on June 29, 2016, which amended and restated the Credit Support Agreement dated April 28, 2011, by
and between Total S.A. and us, as amended, which was entered into in connection with the Tender Offer.

Under the Credit Support Agreement, Total S.A. has agreed to enter into one or more guarantee agreements
(each a ‘‘Guaranty’’) with banks providing letter of credit facilities to us in support of certain of our businesses and
for other permitted purposes. Total S.A. will guarantee the payment to the applicable issuing bank of our obligation
to reimburse a draw on a letter of credit and pay interest thereon in accordance with the letter of credit facility
between such bank and us. At any time until December 31, 2018, we may request that Total S.A. provide a Guaranty
in support of our payment obligations with respect to a letter of credit facility. Such letters of credit must be issued
no later than December 31, 2018 and expire no later than March 31, 2020. Total S.A. is required to issue and enter
into the Guaranty requested by us, subject to certain terms and conditions. In addition, Total S.A. will not be required
to enter into the Guaranty if, after giving effect to our request for a Guaranty, the sum of (a) the aggregate amount
available to be drawn under all guaranteed letter of credit facilities, (b) the amount of letters of credit available to
be issued under any guaranteed facility, and (c) the aggregate amount of draws (including accrued but unpaid interest)
on any letters of credit issued under any guaranteed facility that have not yet been reimbursed by us, would exceed
$500 million in the aggregate. Such maximum amounts of credit support available to us can be reduced upon the
occurrence of specified events.

In consideration for the commitments of Total S.A. pursuant to the Credit Support Agreement, we are required
to pay Total S.A. a guaranty fee for each letter of credit that is the subject of a Guaranty under the Credit Support
Agreement and was outstanding for all or part of the preceding calendar quarter, which fee (applied on a tiered basis)
will be equal to: (x) the average daily amount of the undrawn amount outstanding on each guaranteed letter of credit
plus any drawn amounts that have not been reimbursed by us or Total S.A., (y) multiplied by (1) 2.35% for letters
of credit issued or extended if our leverage ratio (subject to reduction or increase consistent with the minimum
leverage covenant set forth in the Revolving Credit Agreement among us, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment
Bank (‘‘Crédit Agricole’’), as agent, and the lenders party thereto, as amended from time to time) (the ‘‘Leverage
Ratio’’) is less than or equal to 4.5 to 1.0; or (2) if the Leverage Ratio is greater than 4.5 to 1.0, 2.35% for letters
of credit issued or extended for amounts less than $200 million; 4.50% for amounts greater than or equal to
$200 million and less than $300 million; 6.50% for amounts greater than or equal to $300 million and less than
$400 million; and 8.00% for amounts greater than or equal to $400 million and less than or equal to $500 million
(z) multiplied by the number of days during such calendar quarter that such letter of credit was outstanding, divided
by 365. As an example, if at the end of a fiscal quarter our leverage ratio is greater than 4.5 to 1.0 and we had
$250 million in letters of credit outstanding during 50 days of the preceding calendar quarter, the guarantee fee would
be equal to $0.95 million (($200 million * 2.35% + $50 million * 4.5%) * 50/365). In addition, we are required to
pay Total S.A. a commitment fee equal to 0.50% times the average daily available facility amount for the preceding
calendar quarter. We are also required to reimburse Total S.A. for payments made under any Guaranty and certain
expenses of Total S.A., plus interest on both. In fiscal 2018, we incurred guaranty fees of approximately $5.3 million
to Total S.A. under the Credit Support Agreement.

We have agreed to undertake certain actions, including, but not limited to, ensuring that our payment obligations
to Total S.A. rank at least equal in right of payment with all of our other present and future indebtedness, other than
certain permitted secured indebtedness. We have also agreed to refrain from taking certain actions, including

18

refraining from making any dividend distributions so long as we have any outstanding repayment obligation to Total
S.A. resulting from a draw on a guaranteed letter of credit.

The Credit Support Agreement will terminate following December 31, 2018, after the later of the satisfaction

of all obligations thereunder and the termination or expiration of each Guaranty provided thereunder.

The Credit Support Agreement may not be assigned by us without the prior written consent of Total S.A.
Total S.A., as the initial guarantor (but not any assignee of Total S.A.), may assign its rights and obligations under
the Credit Support Agreement without our consent to an entity that is a Total S.A. subsidiary and which satisfies
certain credit requirements. In connection with an assignment to an assignee that is rated lower than A/A2, Total S.A.
would be required to either (a) pay to us an assignment fee equal to $10 million as of June 29, 2016 and reduced by
$1 million at the beginning of each calendar quarter thereafter until reduced to zero or (b) agree to pay us a
make-whole amount based on a calculation of the amount actually paid by us to banks that are party to letter of credit
facilities (both guaranteed and non-guaranteed) and to lenders in revolving credit facilities permitted under the Credit
Support Agreement in increased costs as a result of Total S.A.’s assignment of its rights and obligations under the
Credit Support Agreement. Such make-whole amount would be payable on a quarterly basis from the assignment date
through the termination date of the Credit Support Agreement.

Under the Credit Support Agreement, we have agreed to undertake certain actions, including, but not limited to,
ensuring that our payment obligations to Total S.A. rank at least equal in right of payment with all of our other present
and future indebtedness, other than certain permitted secured indebtedness. We also agreed to refrain from taking
certain actions as detailed in the Credit Support Agreement, including (1) amending any agreements related to any
guaranteed letter of credit facility, (2) granting any lien to secure indebtedness unless (a) an identical lien was granted
to Total S.A. and (b) such other lien was at all times equal or subordinate to the priority of the lien granted to Total
S.A. under (a), and (3) making any equity distributions.

Under the Credit Support Agreement, following a Trigger Event (as defined in the agreement and described
below), and during its continuation, Total S.A. could elect not to enter into any additional Guarantees; declare all or
any portion of the outstanding amounts owed by us to Total S.A. to be due and payable; direct banks that had provided
guaranteed letter of credit facilities to stop all issuances of any additional letters of credit under such facilities; access
and inspect our relevant financial records and other documents upon reasonable notice to us; and exercise all other
rights it may have had under applicable law, provided that at its discretion, Total S.A. could also rescind such actions.

Each of the following events constitute a ‘‘Trigger Event’’:

•

•

•

•

•

•

we default with respect to our reimbursement obligations to Total S.A. described above or any other
payment obligation under the Credit Support Agreement that is 30 days overdue for which Total S.A.
demands payment in writing;

any representation or warranty made by us in the Credit Support Agreement was false, incorrect,
incomplete, or misleading in any material respect when made and is not cured within 15 days after notice
thereof by Total S.A.;

we fail, and continue to fail for 15 days, to observe or perform any material covenant, obligation, condition,
or agreement in the Credit Support Agreement;

we default in the observance or performance of any agreement, term, or condition contained in a guaranteed
letter of credit facility that would constitute an event of default or similar event thereunder (other than an
obligation to pay any amount, the payment of which was guaranteed by Total S.A.), up to or beyond any
grace period provided in such facility, unless waived by the applicable bank and Total S.A.;

we or any of our subsidiaries default in the observance or performance of any agreement, term, or condition
contained in any bond, debenture, note, or other indebtedness such that the holders of such indebtedness
could accelerate the payment of $25 million or more of such indebtedness; and

certain bankruptcy or insolvency events.

In addition to the Credit Support Agreement, we and Total S.A. entered into a letter agreement (the ‘‘Letter
Agreement’’) on May 8, 2017 to facilitate the issuance by Total S.A. of one or more guaranties of our payment
obligations of up to $100 million (the ‘‘Support Amount’’) under the Amended and Restated Revolving Credit
Agreement with Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, as ‘‘administrative agent,’’ and the other lenders

19

party thereto. In consideration for the commitments of Total S.A. pursuant to the Letter Agreement, we are required
to pay a guarantor commitment fee of 0.50% per annum for the unutilized Support Amount and a guaranty fee of
2.35% per annum of the outstanding guaranties. The maturity date of the Letter Agreement is August 26, 2019.

Affiliation Agreement

In connection with the Tender Offer, we and Total entered into an affiliation agreement (the ‘‘Affiliation
Agreement’’). The Affiliation Agreement was amended on June 7, 2011, December 12, 2011, February 28, 2012, and
August 10, 2012. The Affiliation Agreement governs the relationship following the closing of the Tender Offer
between SunPower, on the one hand, and Total S.A., Total, any other affiliate of Total S.A. and any member of a
group of persons formed for the purpose of acquiring, holding, voting, disposing of, or beneficially owning our voting
stock of which Total S.A. or any of its affiliates is a member (the ‘‘Total Group’’), on the other hand.

Standstill. Following the closing of the Tender Offer and during the Standstill Period (as defined below), Total,

Total S.A., and the Total Group may not:

•

•

•

effect or seek, or announce any intention to effect or seek, any transaction that would result in the Total
Group beneficially owning shares in excess of the Applicable Standstill Limit (as defined below), or take
any action that would require us to make a public announcement regarding the foregoing;

request that (i) we, (ii) our Board members that are independent directors and not appointed to the Board
by Total (the ‘‘Disinterested Directors’’), or (iii) our officers or employees, amend or waive any of the
standstill restrictions applicable to the Total Group described above; or

enter into any discussions with any third party regarding any of the foregoing.

In addition, no member of the Total Group may, among other things, solicit proxies relating to the election of

directors to our Board without the prior approval of the Disinterested Directors.

The Total Group is, however, permitted to either (i) make and consummate a Total Tender Offer or (ii) propose
and effect a Total Merger so long as, in each case, Total complies with certain advance notice and prior negotiation
obligations, including providing written notice to us at least 120 days before commencing or proposing such Total
Tender Offer or Total Merger and making its designees reasonably available for the purpose of negotiation with the
Disinterested Directors concerning such Total Tender Offer or Total Merger.

The ‘‘Standstill Period’’ is the period beginning on the date of the Affiliation Agreement and ending on the

earlier to occur of:

•

•

•

•

•

a change of control of our company;

the first time that the Total Group beneficially owns less than 15% of outstanding voting power of our
company;

we or our Board take or fail to take certain of the actions described below under ‘‘—Events Requiring
Stockholder Approval by Total’’ or fail to comply with certain of the covenants described below under
‘‘—Covenants of Total and SunPower’’ during the time when Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries
of Total S.A., owns 50% or less of the outstanding voting power of our company or 40% or less of the
outstanding voting power of our company when at least $100 million in Guarantees are outstanding under
the Credit Support Agreement;

a tender offer for at least 50% of the outstanding voting power of our company is commenced by a third
party after the time when Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., owns 50% or less
of the outstanding voting power of our company or 40% or less of the outstanding voting power of our
company when at least $100 million in Guarantees are outstanding under the Credit Support Agreement;
and

the termination of the Affiliation Agreement.

The ‘‘Applicable Standstill Limit’’ is 70% of the lower of (i) the then outstanding shares of our common stock

or (ii) the then outstanding voting power of our company.

20

During the Standstill Period, the Total Group will not be in breach of its standstill obligations described above
if any member of the Total Group holds beneficial ownership of shares of our common stock in excess of the
Applicable Standstill Limit solely as a result of:

•

•

•

recapitalizations, repurchases, or other actions taken by us or our controlled subsidiaries that have the effect
of reducing the number of shares of our common stock then outstanding;

the issuance of shares of our common stock to Total in connection with the acquisition of Tenesol SA; or

the rights specified in any ‘‘poison pill’’ share purchase rights plan having separated from the shares of our
common stock and a member of the Total Group having exercised such rights.

Transfer of Control. If any member or members of the Total Group seek to transfer, in one or a series of
transactions, either (i) 40% or more of the outstanding shares of our common stock or (ii) 40% or more of the
outstanding voting power of our company to a single person or group, then such transfer must be conditioned on, and
may not be effected, unless the transferee either:

• makes a tender offer to acquire 100% of the voting power of our company, at the same price per share of
voting stock and using the same form of consideration to be paid by the transferee to the Total Group; or

•

proposes a merger providing for the acquisition of 100% of the voting power of
our company, at the same price per share of voting stock and using the same form of consideration to be
paid by the transferee to the Total Group.

Total’s Rights to Maintain. The Total Group has the following rights to maintain its ownership in us until (i) the
first time that the Total Group owns less than 40% of the outstanding voting power of our company, or (ii) until the
first time that Total transfers shares of our common stock to a person other than Total S.A. or a controlled subsidiary
of Total S.A. and, as a result of such transfer, Total S.A. and its subsidiaries own less than 50% of the outstanding
voting power of our company.

If we propose to issue new securities primarily for cash in a financing transaction, then Total has the right to
purchase a portion of such new securities equal to its percentage ownership in us. Total can also elect to purchase
our securities in open market transactions or through privately negotiated transactions in an amount equal to its
percentage ownership in connection with such issuance of new securities. If we propose to issue new securities in
consideration for our purchase of a business or assets of a business, then Total has the right to purchase additional
securities in the open market or through privately-negotiated transactions equal to its percentage ownership in us.
Total has similar rights in the event that we issue or propose to issue (including pursuant to our equity plans or as
the result of the conversion of our convertible securities) securities that, together with all other issuances of securities
by us since the end of the preceding fiscal quarter, aggregate to more than 1% of our fully diluted equity. Total has
a nine-month grace period, subject to certain extensions to satisfy regulatory conditions, to acquire securities in the
open market or through privately negotiated transactions in connection with any of the securities issuances described
above.

SunPower Board. The Affiliation Agreement provides that Total is entitled to designate nominees to our Board,
subject to the maintenance of certain ownership thresholds described below. See ‘‘Proposal One’’ above for more
details on our current Board membership.

So long as Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., owns at least 10% of the outstanding
voting power of our company, then our Board must use its reasonable best efforts to elect the directors designated
by Total as follows:

•

•

•

until the first time that Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., owns less than 50%
of the voting power of our company, Total will be entitled to designate five nominees to serve on our Board;

until the first time that Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., owns less than 50%
but not less than 40% of the voting power of our company, Total will be entitled to designate four nominees
to serve on our Board;

until the first time that Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., owns less than 40%
but not less than 30% of the voting power of our company, Total will be entitled to designate three
nominees to serve on our Board;

21

•

•

until the first time that Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., owns less than 30%
but not less than 20% of the voting power of our company, Total will be entitled to designate two nominees
to serve on our Board; and

until the first time that Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., owns less than 20%
but not less than 10% of the voting power of our company, Total will be entitled to designate one nominee
to serve on our Board.

For as long as they are serving on our Board, the directors designated by Total will be allocated across the three
classes that comprise our Board in a manner as equal as practicable.

Subject to the listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market, until the first time that Total, together with the

controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., owns less than 30% of the outstanding voting power of our company:

•

•

•

the Audit Committee will be composed of three Disinterested Directors;

the Compensation Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will each be
composed of two Disinterested Directors and two directors designated by Total; and

any other standing committee will be composed of two Disinterested Directors and two directors designated
by Total.

Until the first time that Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., own less than 10% of the
outstanding voting power of our company, a representative of Total will, subject to certain exceptions, be permitted
to attend all meetings of our Board or any committee thereof in a non-voting, observer capacity (other than any
committee whose sole purpose is to consider a transaction for which there exists an actual conflict of interest between
the Total Group, on the one hand, and us and any of our affiliates, on the other hand).

Events Requiring Specific Board Approval. At any time when Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of
Total S.A., owns at least 30% of the outstanding voting power of our company, neither the Total Group nor we (or
any of our affiliates) may effect any of the following without first obtaining the approval of a majority of the
Disinterested Directors:

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

any amendment to our Certificate of Incorporation or By-Laws;

any transaction that, in the reasonable judgment of the Disinterested Directors, involves an actual conflict
of interest between the Total Group, on the one hand, and us and any of our affiliates, on the other hand;

the adoption of any shareholder rights plan or the amendment or failure to renew our existing shareholder
rights plan;

except as provided above, the commencement of any tender offer or exchange offer by the Total Group for
shares of our common stock or securities convertible into shares of our common stock, or the approval of
a merger of us or any company that we control with a member of the Total Group;

any voluntary dissolution or liquidation of our company or any company that we control;

any voluntary bankruptcy filing by us or any company that we control or the failure to oppose any other
person’s bankruptcy filing or action to appoint a receiver of our company or any company that we control;

any delegation of all or a portion of the authority of our Board to any committee thereof;

any amendment, modification, or waiver of any provision of the Affiliation Agreement;

any modification of, or action with respect to, director’s and officer’s insurance coverage; or

any reduction in the compensation of the Disinterested Directors.

Events Requiring Supermajority Board Approval. At any time when Total, together with the controlled
subsidiaries of Total S.A., owns at least 30% of the outstanding voting power of our company, neither Total nor we
(nor any of Total’s or our affiliates, respectively) may, without first obtaining the approval of two-thirds of our
directors (including at least one Disinterested Director), effect any approval or adoption of our annual operating plan
or budget that has the effect of reducing the planned letter of credit utilization in any given year by more than 10%
below the applicable maximum letter of credit amount in the Credit Support Agreement.

22

Events Requiring Stockholder Approval by Total. Until the first time that Total, together with the controlled
subsidiaries of Total S.A., owns 50% or less of the outstanding voting power of our company or 40% or less of the
outstanding voting power of our company when at least $100 million in Guarantees are outstanding pursuant to the
Credit Support Agreement and, thereafter, for so long as (1) any loans by Total S.A. to us remain outstanding, (2) any
guarantees by Total S.A. of any of our indebtedness remain outstanding, or (3) any other continuing obligation of
Total S.A. to or for the benefit of us remain outstanding (‘‘Total Stockholder Approval Period’’), neither we
(including any of our controlled subsidiaries) nor our Board may effect any of the following without first obtaining
the approval of Total:

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

any amendment to our Certificate of Incorporation or By-Laws;

any transaction pursuant to which we or any company that we control acquires or otherwise obtains the
ownership or exclusive use of any business, property, or assets of a third party if as of the date of the
consummation of such transaction the aggregate net present value of the consideration paid or to be paid
exceeds the lower of (i) 15% of our then-consolidated total assets or (ii) 15% of our market capitalization;

any transaction pursuant to which a third party obtains ownership or exclusive use of any of our business,
property, or assets or those of any company that we control if as of the date of the consummation of such
transaction the aggregate net present value of the consideration received or to be received exceeds the lower
of (i) 10% of our then-consolidated total assets or (ii) 10% of our market capitalization;

the adoption of any shareholder rights plan or certain changes to our existing shareholder rights plan;

except for the incurrence of certain permitted indebtedness, the incurrence of additional indebtedness in
excess of the difference, if any, of 3.5 times our LTM EBITDA (as defined in the Affiliation Agreement)
less our Outstanding Gross Debt (as defined in the Affiliation Agreement);

subject to certain exceptions, any voluntary dissolution or liquidation of our company or any company that
we control;

any voluntary bankruptcy filing by us or any company that we control or the failure to oppose any other
person’s bankruptcy filing or action to appoint a receiver of our company or any company that we control;
or

any repurchase of our common stock.

Certain Matters Related to SunPower’s Shareholder Rights Plan. Until the Total Group beneficially owns less
than 15% of the outstanding voting power of our company, neither we nor our Board is permitted to adopt any
shareholder rights plan or make certain changes to our existing shareholder rights plan without the approval of Total.

Covenants of Total and SunPower. In order to effect the transactions contemplated by the Affiliation Agreement,

each of Total and we have committed to taking certain actions. With respect to us, such actions include:

•

•

•

amending our By-Laws to provide that the Total Group may call a special meeting of stockholders in
certain circumstances;

taking certain actions to exculpate Total S.A., Total, any controlled subsidiary of Total S.A., and those of
our directors designated by Total from corporate opportunities, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable
law;

taking certain actions to render Delaware’s business combination statute inapplicable to the Total Group
and certain future transferees of the Total Group;

• making certain amendments to our shareholder rights plan, including excluding the Total Group from the

definition of ‘‘Acquiring Person’’ under such plan;

•

•

renewing our existing shareholder rights plan so long as the Total Group beneficially owns at least 15% of
our outstanding voting power; and

providing Total with certain of our financial information from time to time.

23

Termination. The Affiliation Agreement generally terminates upon the earlier to occur of (i) Total, together with
the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., owning less than 10% of the outstanding voting power of our company or
(ii) Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., owning 100% of the outstanding voting power of
our company.

Affiliation Agreement Guaranty

Total S.A. entered into a guaranty (the ‘‘Affiliation Agreement Guaranty’’) in connection with the Tender Offer
and entry into the Affiliation Agreement, pursuant to which Total S.A. unconditionally guarantees the full and prompt
payment of Total S.A.’s, Total’s, and each Total S.A. controlled company’s payment obligations under the Affiliation
Agreement and the full and prompt performance of their respective representations, warranties, covenants, duties, and
agreements contained in the Affiliation Agreement.

Research & Collaboration Agreement

In connection with the Tender Offer, we and Total entered into a Research & Collaboration Agreement (the
‘‘R&D Agreement’’) that establishes a framework under which the parties engage in long-term research and
development collaboration (the ‘‘R&D Collaboration’’). The R&D Collaboration encompasses a number of different
projects (‘‘R&D Projects’’), with a focus on advancing our technology position in the crystalline silicon domain, as
well as ensuring our industrial competitiveness.

The R&D Agreement contemplates a joint committee (the ‘‘R&D Strategic Committee’’) to identify, plan, and
manage the R&D Collaboration. Due to the impracticability of anticipating and establishing all of the legal and
business terms that would be applicable to the R&D Collaboration or to each R&D Project, the R&D Agreement sets
forth broad principles applicable to the parties’ potential R&D Collaboration, and the R&D Strategic Committee
establishes the particular terms governing each particular R&D Project consistent with the terms set forth in the R&D
Agreement. In fiscal 2018, Total contributed $0.1 million to us under the R&D Agreement.

Registration Rights Agreement

In connection with the Tender Offer, we and Total entered into a customary registration rights agreement (the
‘‘Registration Rights Agreement’’) related to Total’s ownership of shares of our common stock. The Registration
Rights Agreement provides Total with shelf registration rights, subject to certain customary exceptions, and up to two
demand registration rights in any 12-month period, also subject to certain customary exceptions. Total also has certain
rights to participate in any registrations of securities that we initiate. We will generally pay all costs and expenses we
incur and that Total incurs in connection with any shelf or demand registration (other than selling expenses incurred
by Total). We and Total have also agreed to certain indemnification rights under the Registration Rights Agreement.
The Registration Rights Agreement terminates on the first date on which: (i) the shares held by Total constitute less
than 5% of our then outstanding common stock; (ii) all of our securities held by Total may be immediately resold
pursuant to Rule 144 promulgated under the Exchange Act during any 90-day period without any volume limitation
or other restriction; or (iii) we cease to be subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act.

The Registration Rights Agreement was amended on May 29, 2013, in connection with the issuance of our
0.75% Senior Convertible Debentures due 2018, to provide that convertible debentures and our common stock
underlying such debentures are ‘‘registrable securities’’ within the meaning of the Registration Rights Agreement.

Stockholder Rights Plan

On April 28, 2011, before the execution of the Tender Offer Agreement, we entered into an amendment (the
‘‘Rights Agreement Amendment’’) to the Rights Agreement, dated August 12, 2008, by and between us and
Computershare Trust Company, N.A., as Rights Agent (the ‘‘Rights Agreement’’), in order to, among other things,
render the rights therein inapplicable to each of: (i) the approval, execution, or delivery of the Tender Offer
Agreement; (ii) the commencement or consummation of the Tender Offer; (iii) the consummation of the other
transactions contemplated by the Tender Offer Agreement and the related agreements; and (iv) the public or other
announcement of any of the foregoing.

On June 14, 2011, we entered into a second amendment to the Rights Agreement (the ‘‘Second Rights
Agreement Amendment’’), in order to, among other things, exempt Total, Total S.A., and certain of their affiliates and
certain members of a group of which they may become members from the definition of ‘‘Acquiring Person’’
thereunder, such that the rights issuable pursuant to the Rights Agreement will not become issuable in connection
with the completion of the Tender Offer.

24

By-Laws Amendment

On June 14, 2011, our Board approved amendments of our By-Laws as required under the Affiliation
Agreement. The amendments: (i) allow any member of the Total Group to call a meeting of stockholders for the sole
purpose of considering and voting on a proposal to effect a Total Merger or a Transferee Merger (as defined in the
Affiliation Agreement); (ii) provide that the number of directors of our Board shall be determined from time to time
by resolution adopted by the affirmative vote of a majority of our entire Board at any regular or special meeting; and
(iii) require, before the termination of the Affiliation Agreement, the approval of a majority of our independent
directors to amend our By-Laws so long as Total, together with the controlled subsidiaries of Total S.A., owns at least
30% of our voting securities as well as require, before the termination of the Affiliation Agreement, Total’s written
consent during the Total Stockholder Approval Period to amend the By-Laws. In November 2011, our By-Laws were
amended to remove restrictions prohibiting stockholder consents in writing. On November 3, 2017, our By-Laws
were amended to provide that the designation of the office of president is not mandatory, in addition to effecting
certain other minor clarifying changes for purposes of administrative ease and alignment with our current
organization.

The Credit Support Agreement, Letter Agreement, Affiliation Agreement, Affiliation Agreement Guaranty,
Research and Collaboration Agreement, Registration Rights Agreement, Rights Agreement Amendment, Second
Rights Agreement Amendment, and By-Law amendments, and amendments thereto, as described above, are attached
to, and more fully described in, our Forms 8-K as filed with the SEC on May 2, 2011, June 7, 2011, June 15, 2011,
December 23, 2011, May 9, 2017, and November 7, 2017, our Solicitation/Recommendation Statement on Form
14D-9 filed with the SEC on May 3, 2011, and our Forms 10-Q as filed with the SEC on November 2, 2012 and
August 10, 2016.

Upfront Warrant

On February 28, 2012, we issued to Total a warrant (the ‘‘Upfront Warrant’’) that is exercisable to purchase
9,531,677 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $7.8685 per share, subject to adjustment for customary
anti-dilution and other events. The Upfront Warrant, which is governed by a Private Placement Agreement, dated
December 23, 2011, and a Compensation and Funding Agreement, dated February 28, 2012, as amended, is
exercisable at any time for seven years after its issuance, provided that, so long as at least $25 million in aggregate
of our convertible debt remains outstanding, such exercise will not cause any ‘‘person,’’ including Total S.A., to,
directly or indirectly, including through one or more wholly owned subsidiaries, become the ‘‘beneficial owner’’ (as
such terms are defined in Rule 13d-3 and Rule 13d-5 under the Exchange Act) of more than 74.99% of the voting
power of our common stock at such time, a circumstance which would trigger the repurchase or conversion of our
existing convertible debt. The Upfront Warrant expired on February 27, 2019.

Sale of 0.75% Debentures Due 2018

In May 2013, we issued $300 million in aggregate principal amount of our 0.75% senior convertible debentures
due 2018 (the ‘‘2018 Debentures’’) in a private offering. An aggregate principal amount of $200 million of the 2018
Debentures were sold to Total by the initial purchasers of the 2018 Debentures. The 2018 Debentures were
convertible into shares of our common stock at any time based on an initial conversion rate of 40.0871 shares of
common stock per $1,000 principal amount of 2018 Debentures (which is equivalent to an initial conversion price
of approximately $24.95 per share of our common stock), subject to adjustment under certain circumstances. The
2018 Debentures were subject to redemption at our option under certain circumstances. On June 1, 2018, the 2018
Debentures were redeemed at maturity.

Sale of 0.875% Debentures Due 2021

In June 2014, we issued $400 million in aggregate principal amount of our 0.875% senior convertible debentures
due 2021 (the ‘‘2021 Debentures’’) in a private offering. An aggregate principal amount of $250 million of the 2021
Debentures were sold to Total by the initial purchasers of the 2021 Debentures. The 2021 Debentures are convertible
into shares of our common stock at any time based on an initial conversion rate of 20.5071 shares of common stock
per $1,000 principal amount of 2021 Debentures (which is equivalent to an initial conversion price of approximately
$48.76 per share of our common stock), subject to adjustment under certain circumstances. The holders of the 2021
Debentures may require us to repurchase their 2021 Debentures under certain circumstances. The 2021 Debentures
are subject to redemption at our option under certain circumstances.

25

Sale of 4.00% Debentures Due 2023

In December 2015, we issued $425 million in aggregate principal amount of our 4.00% senior convertible
debentures due 2023 (the ‘‘2023 Debentures’’) in a private offering. An aggregate principal amount of $100 million
of the 2023 Debentures were sold to Total by the initial purchasers of the 2023 Debentures. The 2023 Debentures are
convertible into shares of our common stock at any time based on an initial conversion rate of 32.7568 shares of
common stock per $1,000 principal amount of 2023 Debentures (which is equivalent to an initial conversion price
of approximately $30.53 per share of our common stock), subject to adjustment under certain circumstances. The
holders of the 2023 Debentures may require us to repurchase their 2023 Debentures under certain circumstances. The
2023 Debentures are subject to redemption at our option under certain circumstances.

Joint Solar Projects

In the ordinary course of our business, from time to time we enter into agreements with Total or its affiliates in
connection with certain of our international project co-development initiatives, whereby SunPower and Total split the
associated costs.

During the first quarter of fiscal 2017, in connection with a co-development project between us and Total, Total
in the
made an approximately $0.5 million payment
co-development project. At closing of the transaction, we received reimbursement of our equity contributions in the
project from Total in the amount of approximately $0.5 million.

to us in exchange for our 50% ownership interest

During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, we sold our remaining noncontrolling interests in a co-development

project entity to Total, for which we received payment from Total in the amount of $6.0 million.

In connection with a co-development solar project between us, Total, and an independent third party investor,
we sold a 25% ownership interest in the company owning such solar project to Total and a 50% ownership interest
in such company to the independent third party investor. The amount received from Total was not material to us for
fiscal 2018. We expected to sell the remaining 25% of our ownership interest to Total during the fourth quarter of
2018 and to supply photovoltaic modules in late 2019 to the project. However, recent amendments to the feed-in-tariff
rules in Japan have had a significant impact on the project’s ability to secure financing. Although financial closing
of the transaction did not occur in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 as expected, discussions between the equity owners
and the lenders are ongoing, and we anticipate reaching financial close in fiscal 2019, or otherwise exploring other
alternatives to monetize our investment in the project.

In fiscal 2018, we received an aggregate of approximately $0.3 million from Total and its affiliates under EPC
services and O&M services agreements, in respect of projects in which Total has a direct or indirect material interest.
As of December 30, 2018, we had $0.02 million of ‘‘Contract assets’’ and $3.8 million of ‘‘Accounts receivable, net’’
on our Consolidated Balance Sheets related to projects in which Total and its affiliates have a direct or indirect
material interest.

Supply Agreements

On November 9, 2016, we and Total executed a four-year, up to 200-megawatt (MW) supply agreement to
support the solarization of certain Total facilities. This agreement, which was amended and restated in March 2017
with changes not material to us, covers the supply of 150 MW of Maxeon 2 (formally known as E-series) panels with
an option to purchase up to another 50 MW of P-Series solar panels. As of December 30, 2018, we had $18.4 million
of ‘‘Contract liabilities, current portion’’ and $45.3 million of ‘‘Contract liabilities, net of current portion’’ on our
Consolidated Balance Sheets related to the aforementioned supply agreement.

On March 19, 2018, we and Total, each through certain affiliates, entered into an agreement whereby we agreed
to sell 3.42 MW of photovoltaic modules to Total for a development project in Chile. This agreement provided for
payment from Total in the amount of approximately $1.3 million, 10% of which was paid upon execution of the
agreement.

On January 7, 2019, we and Total, each through certain affiliates, entered into an agreement whereby we agreed
to sell 3.7 MW of photovoltaic modules to Total for a ground-mounted solar installation in Dubai. This agreement
provided for payment from Total in the amount of approximately $1.35 million, 10% of which was paid after
execution of the agreement.

On March 4, 2019, we and Total, each through certain affiliates, entered into an agreement whereby we agreed
to sell 10 MW of photovoltaic modules to Total for commercial rooftop solar installations in Dubai. This agreement
provided for payment from Total in the amount of approximately $3.16 million, 10% of which is payable in April
2019.

26

AUDIT COMMITTEE REPORT

The Audit Committee of our Board serves as the representative of the Board with respect to its oversight of:
•
•
•
•

our accounting and financial reporting processes and the audit of our financial statements;
the integrity of our financial statements;
our internal controls;
our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements and efficacy of and compliance with our corporate
policies;
the independent registered public accounting firm’s appointment, qualifications, and independence; and
the performance of our internal audit function.

•
•

The Audit Committee also reviews the performance of our independent registered public accounting firm, Ernst
& Young LLP, in the annual audit of financial statements and in assignments unrelated to the audit, and reviews the
independent registered public accounting firm’s fees.

The Audit Committee provides the Board such information and materials as it may deem necessary to make the
Board aware of financial matters requiring the attention of the Board. The Audit Committee reviews our financial
disclosures and meets privately, outside the presence of our management, with our independent registered public
accounting firm. In fulfilling its oversight responsibilities, the Audit Committee reviewed and discussed the audited
financial statements in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for our fiscal year ended December 30, 2018 with
management, including a discussion of the quality and substance of the accounting principles, the reasonableness of
significant judgments made in connection with the audited financial statements, and the clarity of disclosures in the
financial statements. The Audit Committee reports on these meetings to our Board.

Our management has primary responsibility for preparing our financial statements and for our financial
reporting process. In addition, our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal
control over financial reporting. Our independent registered public accounting firm, Ernst & Young LLP, is
responsible for expressing an opinion on the conformity of our financial statements to generally accepted accounting
principles and the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting.

The Audit Committee reports as follows:

(1) The Audit Committee has reviewed and discussed the audited financial statements for fiscal 2018 with our

management.

(2) The Audit Committee has discussed with Ernst & Young LLP, our independent registered public accounting
firm, the matters required to be discussed by Auditing Standard No. 1301, ‘‘Communications with Audit
Committees’’ issued by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board.

(3) The Audit Committee has received the written disclosures and the letter from Ernst & Young LLP required
by the applicable requirements of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board regarding the
independent accountant’s communications with the Audit Committee regarding independence, and has
discussed with Ernst & Young LLP its independence, including whether Ernst & Young LLP’s provision
of non-audit services to us is compatible with its independence.

The Audit Committee has adopted a policy that requires advance approval of all audit, audit-related, tax, and
other services performed by the independent registered public accounting firm. The policy provides for pre-approval
by the Audit Committee (or its Chair pursuant to delegated authority) of specifically defined audit and non-audit
services. Unless the specific service has been previously pre-approved with respect to that fiscal year, the Audit
Committee (or its Chair pursuant to delegated authority) must approve the specific service before the independent
registered public accounting firm is engaged to perform such services for us.

Based on the review and discussion referred to in items (1) through (3) above,

the Audit Committee
recommended to our Board, and the Board approved, the inclusion of our audited financial statements in our Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 30, 2018, as filed with the SEC.

The foregoing report was submitted by the Audit Committee of the Board and shall not be deemed to be
‘‘soliciting material’’ or to be ‘‘filed’’ with the SEC or subject to Regulation 14A promulgated by the SEC or
Section 18 of the Exchange Act, and shall not be deemed incorporated by reference into any prior or subsequent filing
by us under the Securities Act of 1933 or the Exchange Act.

AUDIT COMMITTEE OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Thomas McDaniel, Chair
Catherine Lesjak
Patrick Wood III

27

The following table sets forth a summary of the compensation we paid to our non-employee directors for fiscal
2018. The table does not include Mr. Werner, who did not receive separate compensation for his service on the Board.

DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

2018 Director Compensation Table

Name

Total-designated members of the Board

Catherine Lesjak

Thomas McDaniel

Pat Wood III

Fees Earned or
Paid in Cash
($)(1)

Stock Awards
($)(2)(3)

—

100,000

100,000

125,000

—

300,009

300,009

300,009

Total
($)

—

400,009

400,009

425,009

(1)

(2)

The amounts reported in this column represent the aggregate cash retainers received by the non-employee directors for fiscal 2018, but do
not include amounts reimbursed to the non-employee directors for expenses incurred in connection with attending Board and committee
meetings.

The amounts reported in this column represent the aggregate grant date fair value computed in accordance with Financial Accounting
Standards Board (or FASB) Accounting Standards Codification (‘‘ASC’’) Topic 718 for restricted stock units granted to our non-employee
directors in fiscal 2018, as further described below. Restricted stock units are fully vested on the date of grant. Each non-employee director
received the following grants of restricted stock units on the following dates with the following grant date fair values (please note that some
amounts reported may not add up exactly due to rounding on an award-by-award basis):

Non-Employee Director

Grant Date

Restricted Stock Units (#)

Grant Date Fair Value ($)

Catherine Lesjak

Thomas McDaniel

Pat Wood III

02/12/2018

05/11/2018

08/13/2018

11/12/2018

02/12/2018

05/11/2018

08/13/2018

11/12/2018

02/12/2018

05/11/2018

08/13/2018

11/12/2018

10,886

8,611

10,745

11,830

10,886

8,611

10,745

11,830

10,886

8,611

10,745

11,830

75,005

75,002

75,000

75,002

75,005

75,002

75,000

75,002

75,005

75,002

75,000

75,002

(3) As of December 30, 2018, no other non-employee directors held stock awards and no non-employee directors held stock options.

2018 Director Compensation Program

Our outside director compensation policy provides for the compensation set forth below for our non-employee

directors, other than the Total-nominated directors:

•

•

•

an annual fee of $400,000 ($100,000 quarterly) for our non-employee directors (other than the Chairman
of the Board) for service on our Board and on Board committees;

if our Chairman is an independent director, an annual fee of $450,000 ($112,500 quarterly) to our Chairman
of the Board for service on our Board and on Board committees; and

an additional annual fee of $25,000 ($6,250 quarterly) to the lead independent director.

The Compensation Committee assessed the competitiveness of director compensation from multiple

perspectives. The assessment included a review of market data from several groups, including:

•

•

•

the same compensation peers used to assess named executive officer compensation;

a group of public U.S. companies with majority outside ownership by another company; and

a broader market of all U.S. companies with annual revenues between $500 million and $5 billion.

28

As part of

its assessment,

the Compensation Committee also considered the relative workload and
responsibilities borne by the independent directors, which we believe are higher than many other public companies
for a number of reasons, including the fact that we have a controlling stockholder, that there are relatively fewer
independent directors on our Board, and that each of them serves on, or chairs, multiple committees. We review
director pay on an annual basis to monitor for changes in competitive pay levels and workload and responsibilities.

Our policy provides that these annual fees are prorated on a quarterly basis for any director that joins the Board
during the year. The $25,000 additional fee payable to the lead independent director is paid in cash. Any fees payable
to the Chairman of the Board are paid in the form of restricted stock units. The other fees are paid on a quarterly basis,
25% in cash on or about the date of the quarterly Board meeting and 75% in the form of fully-vested restricted stock
units on the eleventh day in the second month of each quarter (or on the next trading day if such day is not a trading
day). Any fractional shares resulting from this calculation are rounded up to a full share. The restricted stock units
are settled in shares of our common stock within seven days of the date of grant. Because Mr. Werner is our Chief
Executive Officer, he is not separately compensated for his service as Chairman of the Board. Similarly, because each
of our Total-nominated directors do not qualify as independent directors under our director compensation policy, such
individuals receive no director compensation.

Stock Ownership Guidelines

In 2015, we adopted stock ownership guidelines for our chief executive officer, certain executive officers, and
non-employee directors. Under the guidelines and subject to certain exceptions, non-employee directors are expected
to own shares of our common stock that have a value equal to five times the annual cash retainer they receive for
serving on our Board, with ownership measured at the end of each calendar year. Shares may be owned directly by
the individual, owned by the individual’s spouse, or held in trust for the benefit of the individual’s family. Each
non-employee director is expected to maintain ownership at or above the threshold applicable to them beginning the
later of December 31, 2020 or five years after first becoming subject to the guidelines.

29

PROPOSAL TWO

ADVISORY VOTE TO APPROVE NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICER COMPENSATION

As required under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, or the Dodd-Frank Act,
and Section 14A of the Exchange Act, we are asking our stockholders to again vote to approve, on an advisory
(non-binding) basis, the compensation of our named executive officers as disclosed in this proxy statement in
accordance with the SEC’s rules.

As described in detail under the headings ‘‘Compensation Discussion and Analysis’’ and ‘‘Executive
Compensation,’’ we have adopted an executive compensation philosophy designed to deliver competitive total
compensation to our executive officers upon the achievement of financial and strategic performance objectives. In
order to implement that philosophy, the Compensation Committee has established a disciplined process for adopting
executive compensation programs and individual executive officer pay actions that
includes the analysis of
competitive market data, a review of each executive officer’s role, performance assessments, and consultation with
the Compensation Committee’s independent compensation consultant. Please read the ‘‘Compensation Discussion
and Analysis’’ and ‘‘Executive Compensation’’ sections for additional details about our executive compensation
programs, including information about the fiscal 2018 compensation of our named executive officers.

2018 Compensation Features. Our compensation programs are intended to attract, retain and reward executive
officers who contribute to SunPower’s success and to align with the Company’s short-term and long-term
performance. The Compensation Committee annually reviews the compensation programs for our named executive
officers to ensure they achieve the desired goals. In fiscal 2018, among the program features incorporated by the
Compensation Committee to implement the executive compensation philosophy stated above are the following:

•

•

•

•

•

Actual payouts under our performance-based cash bonus programs (specifically, the 2018 Corporate
Annual Bonus Program and the Executive Semi-Annual Incentive Bonus Plan) for our named executive
officers were determined based on performance against a number of objectives: Non-GAAP revenue,
adjusted EBITDA, and cash and cash equivalents metrics2 and corresponding performance targets, along
with corporate milestone performance targets, a safety modifier based on company safety performance, and
individual modifiers assigned based on individual performance.

Long-term incentives in the form of time- and performance-based restricted stock units comprised a large portion
of each named executive officer’s compensation and are linked to the long-term performance of our stock.
Restricted stock units generally vest over four years, and performance-based restricted stock units are earned
only after the achievement of corporate performance targets and also generally vest over a four-year period.

Earning performance-based restricted stock units depends on the achievement of performance targets
corresponding to our non-GAAP revenue, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted cash and cash equivalents, and
operating expense and cost of goods sold overhead reduction metrics, as well as other individualized
metrics (in the case of certain of our executive officers).

Individual performance was also measured for each half of the fiscal year based on each named executive
officer’s achievement of his or her personal Key Results, which support our corporate, strategic, and
operational milestones, as well as other individual performance factors, as evaluated by our chief executive
officer (or, in the case of our chief executive officer, by the Board) in connection with the assignment of
an individual modifier to each named executive officer.

Our change of control severance agreements do not entitle our named executive officers to payment without
termination of employment following a change of control (a ‘‘double trigger’’).

Our financial and operational performance was the key factor in the compensation decisions and outcomes for
fiscal 2018, as further described in the ‘‘Compensation Discussion and Analysis’’ and ‘‘Executive Compensation’’
sections. One of the core tenets of our executive compensation philosophy is our emphasis on performance pay. As
highlighted in the Compensation Components chart in the ‘‘Compensation Discussion and Analysis’’ section, in fiscal
2018, a large portion of our named executive officers’ target compensation (87% for our chief executive officer and
averaging 79% for our other named executive officers) consisted of annual and semi-annual incentive bonus
programs and long-term equity incentives.

2 Non-GAAP revenue and adjusted EBITDA (defined as net income before income taxes, interest income, depreciation, and amortization) are

non-GAAP financial measures. See Appendix A,“Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”

30

The Compensation Committee believes that our executive compensation programs, executive officer pay levels,
and individual pay actions approved for our executive officers, including our named executive officers, are directly
aligned with our executive compensation philosophy and fully support its goals. In fiscal 2018: (i) performance with
respect to our annual revenue metric exceeded the minimum performance level but fell short of the target
performance level, (ii) performance with respect to our adjusted EBITDA metric exceeded the relevant target
performance levels but did not reach the maximum performance level, (iii) performance with respect to our adjusted
cash and cash equivalents metric exceeded the minimum performance level but fell short of the target performance
level, and (iv) performance with respect to our operating expense and cost of goods sold overhead reduction metric
exceeded the minimum performance level but fell short of the target performance level, which, combined, resulted
in regular performance-based restricted stock awards granted to our named executive officers other than the chief
executive officer and William Mulligan (our former Executive Vice President, Global Operations) being earned at
97.1% of the target level. Our corporate performance in fiscal 2018 also resulted in aggregate cash bonus awards
under our performance-based cash bonus programs at approximately 97.4% of the target level.

In fiscal 2018, our chief executive officer and Dr. Mulligan earned the majority of the annual performance-based
restricted stock awards awarded to them based on: (i) performance with respect to our annual revenue metric which
exceeded the minimum performance level but fell short of the target performance level, (ii) performance with respect
to our adjusted EBITDA metric which exceeded the relevant target performance levels but did not reach the
maximum performance level, and (iii) performance with respect to our adjusted cash and cash equivalents metric
which exceeded the minimum performance level but fell short of the target performance level, which, combined,
resulted in performance-based restricted stock awards granted to our chief executive officer being earned at 99.4%
of the target level.

In fiscal 2018, our chief executive officer earned additional performance-based restricted stock awards based on
(i) performance with respect to operating expense and cost of goods sold overhead reduction metric which exceeded
the minimum performance level but fell short of the target performance level and (ii) performance with respect to
reorganization of corporate operating expenses into the business units achieved at the maximum level, which,
combined, resulted in additional performance-based restricted stock awards granted to our chief executive officer
being earned at 120% of the target level.

In fiscal 2018, Dr. Mulligan earned additional performance-based restricted stock awards based on
(i) performance with respect to operating expense and cost of goods sold overhead reduction metric which exceeded
the minimum performance level but fell short of the target performance level and (ii) performance with respect to
business unit cash flow metric which exceeded the relevant target performance level but did not reach the maximum
performance level, which, combined, resulted in additional performance-based restricted stock awards granted to
Dr. Mulligan being earned at 117.7% of the target level.

We are asking our stockholders to indicate their support for our named executive officer compensation as
described in this proxy statement. This proposal, commonly known as a ‘‘say-on-pay’’ proposal, gives our
stockholders the opportunity to express their views on our named executive officers’ compensation. This vote is not
intended to address any specific compensation item, but rather the overall compensation of our named executive
officers and the philosophy, policies, and practices described in this proxy statement. Accordingly, the Board
recommends that our stockholders vote ‘‘FOR’’ the following resolution at the Annual Meeting:

‘‘RESOLVED, that, on an advisory basis, the compensation of SunPower’s named executive officers, as
disclosed pursuant to Item 402 of Regulation S-K, including the Compensation Discussion and Analysis,
compensation tables, and related narratives and descriptions in SunPower’s proxy statement for the Annual
Meeting, is hereby APPROVED.’’

Vote Required

The non-binding advisory vote on named executive officer compensation requires the affirmative vote of the
holders of a majority of our stock having voting power and in attendance or represented by proxy at the Annual
Meeting. ‘‘Broker non-votes’’ have no effect and will not be counted towards the vote total for this proposal.
Abstentions will have the effect of votes against this proposal.

31

Although the say-on-pay vote is advisory, and therefore not binding on us, the Compensation Committee, or our
Board, our Board and our Compensation Committee value the opinions of our stockholders. To the extent there is any
significant vote against our named executive officers’ compensation as disclosed in this proxy statement, we expect
to consider our stockholders’ concerns and the Compensation Committee expects to evaluate whether any actions are
necessary to address those concerns.

THE BOARD RECOMMENDS A VOTE ‘‘FOR’’ THE APPROVAL OF THE COMPENSATION OF
OUR NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS, AS DISCLOSED IN THIS PROXY STATEMENT PURSUANT TO
THE COMPENSATION DISCLOSURE RULES OF THE SEC, ON A NON-BINDING, ADVISORY BASIS.

32

EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

Biographical information for our executive officers, other than Mr. Werner, is listed below. Biographical
information for Mr. Werner, who is both a director and an executive officer of the Company, can be found in the
section entitled ‘‘Proposal One—Re-Election of Class II Directors.’’

Name

Kenneth Mahaffey

William Mulligan III

Douglas Richards

Manavendra Sial

Age

50

58

60

42

Position

Executive Vice President and General Counsel

Former Executive Vice President, Global Operations

Executive Vice President, Administration

Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Kenneth Mahaffey is the Executive Vice President, General Counsel, and Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer
of SunPower with responsibility for the Company’s global legal organization. He is an accomplished executive with
more than 20 years of legal experience. Mr. Mahaffey joined SunPower in 2006 as a founding member of our legal
department. During his tenure, Mr. Mahaffey has managed attorneys and professionals around the globe who handle
all legal, contract, regulatory, and compliance matters in support of the Company’s core business segments. He has
also provided lead support for the Company’s corporate functions, including finance, mergers and acquisitions,
marketing, policy, and communication. Mr. Mahaffey has deep expertise in renewable energy law, finance, corporate
governance, and compliance matters. Before joining SunPower, he worked as an attorney in private practice
managing a variety of commercial and litigation matters. Mr. Mahaffey has a Bachelor of Arts degree from University
of California, San Diego, and a Juris Doctor degree from McGeorge School of Law, University of the Pacific.

William Mulligan III served as our Executive Vice President, Global Operations, from February 2017 to March
2019, and was responsible for leading our global operations and worldwide materials sourcing. Dr. Mulligan
originally joined SunPower in 1998 and worked for more than 12 years as Vice President of research and
development, where he led the development of our photovoltaic cell technology and the world’s highest efficiency
commercial solar panel. He left SunPower in 2010, but returned four years later with our acquisition of SolarBridge,
where he was serving as President and Chief Executive Officer. Most recently, he was SunPower’s Vice President,
Upstream Strategy. He also served on the board of directors of Dongfang Huansheng Photovoltaic (Jiangsu) Co., Ltd.,
our manufacturing joint venture in China. Dr. Mulligan has more than 30 years of solar and microelectronics industry
experience, and prior to SunPower served in various engineering and management positions at JX Crystals, Inc., the
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, AstroPower, and Fairchild/National Semiconductor. Dr. Mulligan received
dual undergraduate degrees in chemistry and history from the University of Washington, a master’s of science in
chemical engineering from the University of Michigan, and his doctorate in materials science from the Colorado
School of Mines. He holds 10 patents and has authored more than 30 publications related to solar energy.

Douglas Richards has served as our Executive Vice President, Administration, since November 2011. From April
2010 to October 2011, Mr. Richards served as our Executive Vice President, Human Resources and Corporate Services.
From September 2007 to March 2010, Mr. Richards served as our Vice President, Human Resources and Corporate
Services. From 2006 to 2007, Mr. Richards was Vice President of Human Resources and Administration for SelectBuild,
a construction services company and a wholly owned subsidiary of BMHC, and from 2000 to 2006, Mr. Richards was
Senior Vice President of Human Resources and Administration for BlueArc, a provider of high performance unified
network storage systems to enterprise markets. Before BlueArc, Mr. Richards spent 10 years at Compaq Computer
Corporation and five years at Apple Computer, Inc. in various management positions. Mr. Richards graduated from
California State University, Chico, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in public administration.

Manavendra Sial has served as our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer since May 2018,
leading the Company’s treasury, project finance, investor relations, financial planning, and accounting organizations.
Previously, he served as the chief financial officer for VECTRA, a $1 billion technology-driven diversified industry
business, which was a portfolio company of certain funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management, LLC.
Prior to VECTRA, Mr. Sial was with SunEdison in various global finance and operations leadership roles from 2011
to 2015, including chief financial officer of MEMC’s solar energy and materials divisions. He also spent 11 years
with General Electric (GE) in a variety of roles, from FP&A leader for the Energy Services unit to Chief Financial
Officer of Power Delivery for GE’s Transmission and Distribution group. He earned his master’s degree in business
administration from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and his Bachelor of Commerce from Delhi
University in India.

33

COMPENSATION DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS

This Compensation Discussion and Analysis provides a detailed review and analysis of our compensation
policies and programs that applied to our named executive officers during the fiscal year ended December 30, 2018.
Our named executive officers, as set forth in the following table, were our chief executive officer, our chief financial
officer and former chief financial officer, and the next three most highly compensated executive officers serving as
of December 30, 2018.

Name

Thomas Werner
Charles Boynton(1)
Manavendra Sial(2)
Kenneth Mahaffey

William Mulligan III

Douglas Richards

Chief Executive Officer

Title

Former Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Executive Vice President and General Counsel

Former Executive Vice President, Global Operations

Executive Vice President, Administration

(1) Mr. Boynton served as our Chief Financial Officer until May 9, 2018 and remained an Executive Vice President of the Company through

July 1, 2018.

(2) Mr. Sial became Chief Financial Officer of the Company on May 9, 2018.

Executive Summary

Our compensation programs are intended to align our named executive officers’ interests with those of our
stockholders by rewarding performance that meets or exceeds the goals that the Compensation Committee establishes, with
the ultimate objective of increasing stockholder value. We have adopted an executive compensation philosophy designed
to deliver competitive total compensation upon the achievement of financial and strategic performance objectives. The total
compensation received by our named executive officers varies based on corporate and individual performance, as measured
against performance goals. Therefore, a significant portion of each named executive officer’s total pay is tied to Company
performance (see the ‘‘2018 Compensation Components’’ chart below).

In fiscal 2018, we achieved $1.815 billion in non-GAAP revenue and Adjusted EBITDA of $111 million
(a GAAP net loss of $5.76 per diluted share), and ended the year with $309 million in cash and cash equivalents in
fiscal 20183, exceeding our performance target for Adjusted EBITDA, and exceeding the minimum performance
target level for revenue and cash and cash equivalents.

For fiscal 2018, our financial performance and performance against other strategic initiatives were the key
factors in the compensation decisions and outcomes for the year, consistent with our commitment to pay for
performance. Highlights of our named executive officer compensation program in 2018 were as follows:

•

•

Commitment to pay for performance. A significant majority of our named executive officers’ target
compensation (87% for our chief executive officer, and averaging 79% for our other named executive
officers) consisted of semi-annual and annual bonus programs and long-term equity incentives.

Cash bonus payouts below target. Our annual bonus program incorporated financial metrics that we
believe align our compensation practices with our business goals and, correspondingly, align executives’
interests with stockholders’ interests. Achievement of performance targets related to our revenue, adjusted
EBITDA, and cash and cash equivalents, along with achievement of our corporate milestone performance
targets and individual modifiers assigned based on individual performance determined the actual payouts
under our performance-based cash bonus programs (specifically, the 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus
Program and the Amended and Restated Executive Semi-Annual Incentive Bonus Plan, which we refer to
as our Executive Semi-Annual Plan) for our named executive officers. In 2018, we introduced a safety
modifier in the 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program to reinforce our safety culture. Our corporate
performance in fiscal 2018 resulted in aggregate cash bonus awards under these programs at approximately
thresholds, and targets are further described below in ‘‘Executive
97%. Performance metrics,
Compensation—Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation.’’

3 To supplement its consolidated financial results presented in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), the
Company uses non-GAAP measures that are adjusted for certain items from the most directly comparable GAAP measures, as described in
Appendix A, “Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”

34

•

•

Performance based stock units achieved below target. Certain performance-based restricted stock units
granted in 2018 to each of our named executive officers other than Mr. Werner and Dr. Mulligan were only
earned if we achieved performance targets set in respect of our annual revenue, Adjusted EBITDA, cash
and cash equivalent metrics, and corporate restructuring performance goals targeting operating expense and
cost of goods sold overhead reduction. Performance with respect to the revenue target, cash and cash
equivalents target, and corporate restructuring target exceeded the minimum performance levels but fell
short of the target performance levels, and performance with respect to the Adjusted EBITDA target
exceeded the target performance level but fell short of the maximum, which resulted in 97% of these equity
awards being earned. Performance metrics,
thresholds, and targets are further described below in
‘‘Executive Compensation—Equity Incentive Plan Compensation.’’

Increased focus on corporate restructuring and cash management performance. Additional
performance-based restricted stock units granted in 2018 to Mr. Werner and Dr. Mulligan were only earned
if we achieved performance targets set
in respect of other specified metrics relating to corporate
restructuring, cost and expense, and cash management. In fiscal 2018, Mr. Werner earned additional
performance-based restricted stock awards based on (i) performance with respect to operating expense and
cost of goods sold overhead reduction targets, which exceeded the minimum performance level but fell
short of the target performance level, and (ii) performance with respect to reorganization of corporate
operating expenses into the business units achieved at the maximum level, which, combined, resulted in
additional performance-based restricted stock awards granted to Mr. Werner being earned at 120% of the
level. Dr. Mulligan earned additional performance-based restricted stock awards based on
target
(i) performance with respect to operating expense and cost of goods sold overhead reduction targets, which
exceeded the minimum performance level but
the target performance level, and
(ii) performance with respect to business unit cash flow targets, which exceeded the relevant target
performance level but did not reach the maximum performance level, which, combined, resulted in
additional performance-based restricted stock awards granted to Dr. Mulligan being earned at 118% of the
target level. Those awards, as well as performance metrics, and achievement levels with respect to all such
awards, are further described below in ‘‘Executive Compensation—Equity Incentive Plan Compensation.’’

fell short of

At our 2018 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, our stockholders voted to approve, on an advisory basis, the
compensation of our named executive officers, as disclosed in the proxy statement for that meeting. We refer to this
vote as our Say-on-Pay vote. Our Compensation Committee considered the results of the Say-on-Pay vote (which
received approximately 86% approval of the votes cast) at its meetings after the Say-on-Pay vote when it set annual
executive compensation. After our Compensation Committee reviewed the stockholders’ approval of the Say-on-Pay
vote in 2018, our Compensation Committee decided to maintain the general framework of our fiscal 2017
compensation policies and programs for our named executive officers in fiscal 2018, with certain modifications,
including updating our peer group, introduction of a safety modifier in performance-based cash bonus awards, and
the introduction of new performance metrics in equity awards focused on corporate restructuring, operating expense
and cost of goods sold overhead reduction, and cash management objectives, as the Committee believed such
programs continued to be in the best interest of our stockholders.

The following discussion should be read together with the information we present in the compensation tables,
the footnotes and narratives to those tables, and the related disclosure appearing in ‘‘Executive Compensation’’ below.

General Philosophy and Objectives

In fiscal 2018, we continued to operate a compensation program designed primarily to reward our named
executive officers based on our financial performance and the achievement of corporate objectives consistent with
increasing long-term stockholder value. Our 2018 executive compensation program was based on the following
primary objectives:

•

•

to attract, retain, and reward executive officers who contribute to our success; and

to align compensation programs with our short- and long-term performance.

35

In order to implement our philosophy, the Compensation Committee has a disciplined process for adopting
executive compensation programs and individual executive officer pay actions that
includes the analysis of
competitive market data, a review of each executive officer’s role, performance assessments, and consultation with
the Compensation Committee’s independent compensation consultant, as described below.

The Compensation Committee believes that the most effective executive compensation program is one that
rewards the achievement of specific corporate and financial goals, with the ultimate objective of increasing
stockholder value. In addition, we believe the mix of base salary, performance-based cash awards, and time-based
and performance-based equity awards provides proper incentives without encouraging excessive risk taking. We
believe that the risks arising from our compensation policies and practices for our employees are not reasonably likely
to have a material adverse effect on our company.

Compensation Setting Process

The Compensation Committee is responsible for managing the compensation of our executive officers, including
our named executive officers, in a manner consistent with our compensation philosophy. In accordance with the
‘‘controlled company’’ exception under the applicable listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market, our
Compensation Committee is composed of two independent directors and two directors designated by our controlling
stockholder, Total. We also have a Section 16 Subcommittee of the Compensation Committee consisting solely of
independent directors available to approve certain compensation matters in accordance with Rule 16b-3 of the
Exchange Act.

The Compensation Committee establishes our compensation philosophy and objectives and annually reviews
and, as necessary and appropriate, adjusts each named executive officer’s compensation. The Compensation
Committee offered our named executive officers total target compensation opportunities ranging from the 50th
percentile to the 75th percentile of our peer group of companies (as further described below) during fiscal 2018. In
general, the Compensation Committee’s philosophy is to set total target compensation between the 50th percentile and
75th percentile of our peer group. Individual named executive officer compensation may be above or below this range
based on experience, scope of position, and individual performance.

When determining appropriate compensation for the named executive officers, the Compensation Committee
considered the advice of an independent compensation consultant, recommendations from management and internal
compensation specialists, practices of companies within our peer group, our performance, our business plan, and
individual performance. As part of this process, the compensation consultant prepared a competitive analysis of our
compensation program, and management presented its recommendations regarding base salary,
time- and
performance-based equity awards, and performance targets under our 2018 Annual Bonus Programs and Executive
Semi-Annual Bonus Plan to the Compensation Committee for its review and consideration. The Compensation
Committee accepts, rejects, or accepts as modified, management’s various recommendations regarding compensation
for the named executive officers other than our chief executive officer. The Compensation Committee also approves,
after modification, management’s recommendations on various performance targets and milestones. The
Compensation Committee met without our chief executive officer when reviewing and establishing his compensation.

In addition, we hired Mr. Sial as our new chief financial officer in May 2018. In consultation with the
Compensation Committee, management considered peer company comparisons, internal pay equity, and Mr. Sial’s
experience in determining his base salary, target bonus, new hire equity grant, and other new hire bonuses and
perquisites, which are further described below in ‘‘Perquisites and Other Compensation.’’

Compensation Consultant

In fiscal 2018, the Compensation Committee directly engaged and retained Semler Brossy, a compensation
consulting firm, as its compensation consultant. The Compensation Committee selected Semler Brossy on the basis
of its experience and familiarity with the technology industry after soliciting and reviewing proposals from a number
of firms, including its former compensation consultant, Radford, a compensation consulting firm. Also in fiscal 2018,
the Compensation Committee directly engaged and retained Radford to identify a list of our peer group of companies.
The Compensation Committee selected Radford on the basis of its experience and familiarity with both the Company
and the technology industry. Radford continued to serve as the Compensation Committee’s compensation consultant
through March 2018, when the role formally transitioned to Semler Brossy.

36

Radford provided the Compensation Committee with market information on the peer companies, as well as
aggregated data on the broader technology market with respect to base salaries, cash bonus awards as a percentage of base
salaries, total cash compensation, equity awards, and total direct compensation. In fiscal 2018, Semler Brossy also advised
the Compensation Committee in connection with evaluating our compensation practices, developing and implementing our
executive compensation program and philosophy, establishing total compensation targets, and setting specific
compensation components to reach the determined total compensation targets for fiscal 2019. Semler Brossy did not
provide any services to us other than advising the Compensation Committee and management, at the direction of the
Compensation Committee, on executive compensation issues. The Compensation Committee has considered and assessed
all relevant factors, including, but not limited to, those set forth in Rule 10C-1(b)(4)(i) through (vi) under the Exchange
Act, that could give rise to a potential conflict of interest with respect to the compensation consultants described above.
Based on this review, the Compensation Committee determined that no material conflict of interest has been raised by the
work performed by either Radford or Semler Brossy.

Peer Group

In fiscal 2018, the Compensation Committee directly engaged and retained Radford to identify, and Semler
Brossy to review, a list of our peer group of companies. The Compensation Committee established the peer group
used in connection with fiscal 2018 compensation decisions consistent with the Compensation Committee’s belief
that the peer group should be based on companies that design and manufacture products with similar complexity,
companies more likely to have robust sales channels including direct to consumers, companies offering end-to-end
solutions to customers, and technology-driven companies. In comparison to our peer group used for purposes of
setting fiscal 2017 compensation, our peer group in fiscal 2018 was updated to remove Advanced Micro Devices,
Lam Research Corporation, Analog Devices, Inc., Linear Technology Corporation, ARRIS Group, Inc., NVIDIA
Corporation, ON Semiconductor Corporation, Quanta Services, Inc., Sensata Technologies Holding, SolarCity
Corporation (acquired by Tesla Motors, Inc.), Hexcel Corporation, Trimble Navigation Limited, Juniper Networks,
Inc., Waters Corporation, Woodward, Inc., KLA Tencor Corporation, and Xilinx, Inc. and to add Generac Holdings,
Mueller Water Products, Plexus, Canadian Solar, EnerSys, SunRun, Tetra Tech, TransAlta, and Tutor Perini. We made
these changes taking into account how well the companies met our selection criteria, as well as our own restructuring
changes, the refocusing of our business, and changes in solar markets. The final peer group was selected using a mix
of the following factors:

•

•

Publicly traded semiconductor, clean technology, and broader high-technology industry companies; and

Companies with between one-third and three times of each of our annual revenues, market value and
employee headcount.

The Compensation Committee believes the characteristics of our fiscal 2018 peer group mirror those of our core
business as closely as possible. The companies included in our peer group for purposes of establishing fiscal 2018
compensation are listed below:

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Marvell Technology Group Ltd.
Mueller Water Products
Canadian Solar
EnerSys
First Solar, Inc.
FLIR Systems, Inc.
Generac Holdings
Itron, Inc.

Market and Peer Group Data

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

AVX Corporation
Belden Inc.
Plexus
SunRun
Tetra Tech
TransAlta
Tutor Perini
Viavi Solutions

In making its compensation decisions for our named executive officers for fiscal 2018, the Compensation
Committee compared the total compensation of each named executive officer to the compensation of individuals in
comparative positions at companies in the peer group based on information that management obtained from public
filings, supplemented by data Radford provided from surveys. In general, the Compensation Committee evaluates
base salaries relative to the 50th percentile of the peer group and both performance-based cash bonus awards and
long-term time- and performance-based equity awards generally between the 50th percentile and 75th percentile of the
peer group.

37

In establishing incentive opportunities, the Compensation Committee focused on corporate performance so that
if our corporate performance was achieved at target levels, the Compensation Committee expected that our named
executive officers’ total pay would be between the 50th percentile of the peer group and the 75th percentile of the peer
group. The Compensation Committee viewed comparisons to peer group and market data as just the beginning, and
not the end, of its discussion regarding our named executive officers’ pay opportunities for fiscal 2018, and looked
to individual performance, the named executive officer’s experience in the executive role, and the executive’s scope
of responsibility being narrower or broader than that of comparable positions at our peer group companies to establish
final pay opportunities either above or below the initial market data comparisons.

In fiscal 2018, target cash compensation (base salary plus target bonus opportunity) was set between the 50th and
75th percentile for each named executive officer except for Mr. Mahaffey. Mr. Mahaffey’s target cash compensation
was set at the 25th percentile due to his limited time in the role. He was promoted to the position of Executive Vice
President and General Counsel on November 1, 2016.

2018 Compensation Components

For fiscal 2018, the Compensation Committee allocated total compensation among various pay elements
consisting of base salary, performance-based cash bonus awards, time-based equity awards, performance-based
equity awards, and perquisites and other compensation. The table below provides an overview of each element of
compensation and is followed by a further discussion and analysis of the specific decisions that we made for each
element for fiscal 2018:

Compensation
Component

Base salary

Performance-based
cash bonus awards

Time-based equity
awards

Performance-based
equity awards

Perquisites and
other compensation

Objective and Basis

Form

Practice

Fixed compensation that is set
at a competitive level for each
position to reward demonstrated
experience and skills.

Semi-annual and annual
incentives that drive our
performance and align
executives’ interests with
stockholders’ interests.

Long-term incentive that aligns
executives’ interests with
stockholders’ interests and helps
retain executives through long-
term vesting periods.

Long-term incentive that
focuses and rewards our
performance and aligns
executives’ interests with
stockholders’ interests and helps
retain executives through long-
term vesting periods.

Offered to attract and retain
talent and to maintain
competitive compensation
packages.

Cash

Cash

Competitive market ranges are generally
established around the 50th percentile, with
consideration for experience and scope of role
relative to comparable positions in one peer
group.

Target incentives are set as a percentage of base
salary and are set between the 50th to the 75th
percentile. Actual payment is calculated based on
achievement of corporate and individual goals.

Restricted
stock units

Target equity awards (time-based plus
performance-based) generally set between the
50th percentile and the 75th percentile.

Performance
stock units

Target equity awards (time-based plus
performance-based) generally set between the
50th percentile and the 75th percentile. Actual
payment is calculated based on achievement of
corporate goals.

Various

We do not generally provide any special
perquisites to our named executive officers.
Newly hired executive officers may receive one-
time signing bonuses or other similar payments to
attract them to join the company. Named
executive officers are eligible for certain
severance benefits pursuant to their employment
agreements and our 2016 Management Career
Transition Plan. Named executive officers are
eligible to participate in health and welfare
benefits and 401(k) matching available to all
employees.

The relative proportion of each element for fiscal 2018, as set forth below, was based generally on the
Compensation Committee’s comparison of compensation that we offered our named executive officers against
the tax and accounting
compensation offered by peer group companies to their named executive officers,
consequences of certain types of equity compensation, and a desire to allocate a higher proportion of total
compensation to performance-based and equity incentive awards.

38

2018 Compensation Components

CEO

Perquisites and Other, …

Base Salary, 15%

OTHER NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS*
Perquisites and Other
2%

Performance-
Based Equity
27%

Base Salary
26%

Performance-
Based Equity, 
42%

Peformance-
Based Cash 
Bonus (Target), 
30%

Time-Based 
Equity, 12%

Time-Based 
Equity
23%

Peformance-
Based Cash 
Bonus (Target)
22%

*

Other Named Executive Officers excludes Manavendra Sial, who was hired in May 2018.

Analysis of Fiscal 2018 Compensation Decisions

Base Salary. For fiscal 2018, the Compensation Committee chose not to adjust the base salaries of our named
executive officers, after taking into account target cash and total compensation levels relative to market data,
executive officer performance and experience in their role, and the executive’s scope of responsibility in comparison
to comparable positions at our peer group companies.

The table below sets forth the salaries in effect in fiscal 2018 compared with the salaries in effect in fiscal 2017

for each of our named executive officers:

Name

Thomas Werner
Manavendra Sial(4)
Charles Boynton(5)
Kenneth Mahaffey

William Mulligan III

Douglas Richards

2017 Base Salary(1)
428,154(3)

—

470,000

325,000

380,000

370,000

2018 Base Salary(2)

600,000

425,000

470,000

325,000

380,000

370,000

(1)

(2)

(3)

These amounts represent 2017 base salaries after April 1, 2017.

These amounts represent 2018 base salaries after April 1, 2018.

Reflects a reduced salary of $1, net of benefit costs, for the first fiscal quarter of 2017, which was reinstated at its previous annualized
amount of $600,000 on April 1, 2017.

(4) Mr. Sial joined the Company as an Executive Vice President on May 2, 2018, and became our Chief Financial Officer on May 9, 2018.

(5) Mr. Boynton served as our Chief Financial Officer until May 9, 2018, and remained an Executive Vice President of the Company through

July 1, 2018.

Performance-Based Cash Bonus Awards. As in the prior fiscal year, we maintained two overall performance-
based cash bonus programs during fiscal 2018 in order to link bonus payments to corporate financial goals and
operational objectives and to individual performance. The first program was our Executive Performance Bonus Plan,
under which we adopted the 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program. All of our named executive officers participated
in the 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program, which is discussed in more detail below. The second program was our
Executive Semi-Annual Incentive Bonus Plan (referenced as our Semi-Annual Bonus Plan).

The supplemental table below entitled ‘‘Estimated Possible Payouts Under Semi-Annual and Annual Bonus
Programs’’ sets forth each named executive officer’s target and maximum payout opportunities under both the 2018
Corporate Annual Bonus Program and the Semi-Annual Bonus Plan. Under the terms of both bonus plans, failure to
achieve certain corporate or individual metrics could have resulted in zero payouts to an individual for a given period.
The column entitled ‘‘2018 Total Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ in our 2018 Summary Compensation
Table below and the footnotes thereto detail the actual payouts awarded under these two bonus plans to each named
executive officer for fiscal 2018.

39

Estimated Possible Payouts Under Semi-Annual and Annual Bonus Programs

Name

Thomas Werner
Manavendra Sial(1)
Charles Boynton(2)
Kenneth Mahaffey

William Mulligan III

Douglas Richards

2018 Semi-Annual
Bonus Plan Target
(Aggregate)
($)

2018 Semi-Annual Bonus
Plan Maximum
(Aggregate)
($)

2018 Corporate Annual
Bonus Program Target
($)

2018 Corporate Annual
Bonus Program Maximum
($)

300,000

95,625

105,750

60,938

85,500

74,000

468,750

149,414

165,234

95,215

133,594

115,625

900,000

286,875

317,250

182,813

256,500

222,000

1,350,000

430,313

475,875

274,219

384,750

333,000

(1) Mr. Sial joined the Company as an Executive Vice President on May 2, 2018, and became Chief Financial Officer of the Company on May 9,

2018. Target and Maximum possible payout are shown at an annualized rate. Actual payouts determined based on date of hire.

(2) Mr. Boynton served as our Chief Financial Officer until May 9, 2018, and remained an Executive Vice President of the Company through
July 1, 2018. Target and Maximum possible payout are shown at an annualized rate. Actual payouts determined based on employment
through separation date.

Because we generally set base salaries for our executive officers at the 50th percentile of the market of salaries
for executive officers in similar positions and with similar responsibilities at comparable companies, we rely on
performance-based cash bonus awards to elevate target total cash compensation to between the 50th percentile and
the 75th percentile.

In fiscal 2018, we allocated 75% of each named executive officer’s aggregate annual target cash bonus awards
under the applicable 2018 Annual Bonus Program and 25% under the Executive Semi-Annual Bonus Plan, to tie a
significant proportion of our named executive officers’ incentive compensation to our full fiscal year operating and
financial results.

Bonus Calculation:

Annual Bonus

Semi-Annual Bonus

Total Bonus

75%

25%

100%

40

The table below summarizes the total target payout levels for each named executive officer in each of fiscal 2017
and fiscal 2018, as well as the target payout levels under the 2018 Annual Bonus Programs and the Executive
Semi-Annual Bonus Plan (for fiscal 2018), expressed as a percentage of annual base salary. For fiscal 2018, the
Compensation Committee maintained target payout levels under these programs at the same percentage of annual
salary for each of our named executive officers, after it evaluated the market data, individual performance, and the
scope of the named executive officer roles.

2017 Total
Target Payout
(including Annual
and Semi-Annual
Programs) as
Percentage of
Annual Salary

2018 Total
Target Payout
(including Annual
and Semi-Annual
Programs) as
Percentage of
Annual Salary

2018
Semi-Annual
Bonus Plan Target
Payout as
Percentage of
Annual Salary

2018 Annual
Bonus Programs
Target Payout as
Percentage of
Annual Salary

200%

—

90%

75%

—

80%

200%

90%

90%

75%

90%

80%

50%

22.5%

22.5%

18.7%

22.5%

20%

150%

67.5%

67.5%

56.3%

67.5%

60%

Name
Thomas Werner(1)
Manavendra Sial(2)
Charles Boynton(3)
Kenneth Mahaffey

William Mulligan III

Douglas Richards

(1)

Target percentages were set based on Mr. Werner’s salary as of April 1, 2017, following reinstatement of his regular annual salary.

(2) Mr. Sial joined the Company as an Executive Vice President on May 2, 2018, and became Chief Financial Officer of the Company on May 9,

2018. Actual payouts were determined based on date of hire.

(3) Mr. Boynton served as our Chief Financial Officer until May 9, 2018, and remained an Executive Vice President of the Company through

July 1, 2018. Actual payouts were determined based on employment through separation date.

Actual bonus payments for each named executive officer under the 2018 Annual Bonus Programs and the
Semi-Annual Bonus Plan are formula-driven, and the formulas are used to calculate actual bonus payments.
See ‘‘Executive Compensation—Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ below for more information about these
formulas.

In fiscal 2018, we continued to use the annual revenue, Adjusted EBITDA, and cash and cash equivalents
metrics, which we believe to be reflective of the results of our operations, and we added a safety modifier, based on
our annual Total Recordable Injury Rate (TRIR). TRIR is a measurement of the total number of fatalities, permanent
disability cases, occupational lost-time accidents, restricted work cases, and medical treatments divided by the
number of worked hours, and then multiplied by 1 million. Total payout factor under the 2018 Annual Bonus
Programs was subject to modification, capped at +10% or –10%, based on achievement with respect to our TRIR
target.

Each of our named executive officers participated in our 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program, which required
the achievement of corporate targets established in respect of our: annual revenue metric (33.3% of payout), annual
Adjusted EBITDA metric (33.3% of payout), and cash and cash equivalents metric (33.3% of payout), as adjusted
by the safety modifier.

In fiscal 2018, we achieved the following, as calculated under the 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program (in

millions of dollars):

Metric

2018 Target

Actual Achievement

Payout Factor

Annual Revenue

Adjusted EBITDA

$2,075

$1,815

23%

$ 68

$111

46%

Cash and Cash
Equivalents

$340

$309

31%

Safety Modifier

Total

.90

1.02

98%

97.4%

Earned bonus amounts are reflected under ‘‘2018 Total Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ in the 2018

Summary Compensation Table below.

Payments to our named executive officers under our Semi-Annual Bonus Plan required the achievement of
corporate targets set in respect of our semi-annual profitability metric and quarterly corporate key results, as modified

41

by an individual modifier assigned by the chief executive officer (or, in the case of our chief executive officer, by
the Board) based on his or her individual performance. Such individual modifiers are expressed as a percentage,
capped at 125%, and are combined with a corporate milestones factor and the level of achievement of our corporate
targets, to calculate bonus payments under the plan.

Example Calculation:

Eligible Earnings

Bonus Target

Adjusted EBITDA Corporate Milestone Factor

Individual Modifier

Bonus Payout

$92,500 

20% 

125% 

50% 

95% 

$10,984 

We incorporate a ‘‘management by objective’’ system throughout our organization to establish performance
goals that supplement our financial goals. Management establishes five-year corporate key results, and then derives
from them annual and quarterly corporate key results, which we refer to as corporate milestones. Each corporate
milestone is reviewed, revised, and approved by our Board, and subsequently the scores are reviewed and approved
by our Compensation Committee. In addition, each named executive officer, other than our chief executive officer,
establishes quarterly personal goals, which we refer to as Key Results, which are approved by the chief executive
officer and are intended to be aligned with each quarter’s corporate milestones. Quarterly corporate milestones in
fiscal 2018 included sensitive business objectives applicable to our entire company, focusing on strategic
transactions, revenue and margin targets, confidential cost and production targets, technology milestones, bookings
targets, major customer transactions, new product development, and manufacturing plans and enhancements. For
fiscal 2018, personal Key Results objectives included confidential revenue and margin targets, product development,
and achieving booking targets, among other operational goals. The Board determined the chief executive officer’s
Key Results, which consisted solely of the quarterly corporate milestones selected after discussion with the chief
executive officer. These Corporate Milestones and individual Key Results are typically challenging in nature and
designed to encourage the individual to achieve success in his or her position during the performance period. At the
end of the year, the Compensation Committee determines the chief executive officer’s individual modifier, and the
chief executive officer determines the individual modifier for each other named executive officer, based on
achievement of their respective individual Key Results.

In fiscal 2018, we achieved an average score of 86% on corporate milestones, and the average individual
modifier assigned to our named executive officers was 97%. The maximum individual modifier was 100% and the
minimum individual modifier was 90%. Factors considered in determining individual modifiers include performance
against corporate, individual key results and annual objectives, and adherence to Company values.

Equity Awards. Our Compensation Committee believes that long-term Company performance is best achieved
by an ownership culture that encourages long-term performance by our executive officers through the use of
equity-based awards. Our SunPower Corporation 2015 Omnibus Incentive Plan, or 2015 Equity Plan, permits the
grant of stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted shares, restricted stock units, performance shares, and
other stock-based awards. Consistent with our goal to attract, retain, and reward executive officers who contribute
to our long-term success in fiscal 2018, our long-term equity awards ranged from the 50th percentile to the
75th percentile of our peer group. The Compensation Committee considered the long-term equity awards made to our
chief executive officer in 2017, and in fiscal 2018 set Mr. Werner’s target long-term equity awards at the 50th
percentile in order to align his at-risk compensation with stockholder returns and to promote long-term retention. Our
other named executive officers’ long-term equity awards were between the 50th percentile and 75th percentile,
considering individual performance, the named executive officer’s experience in the executive role, the executive’s
scope of responsibility being narrower or broader than that of comparable positions at our peer group companies, and
equity burn-rate and shareholder dilution.

The Compensation Committee then allocated long-term equity awards between time-based and performance-
based restricted stock units. To balance the advantages of both time-based and performance-based awards, the
Compensation Committee decided that annual
long-term equity incentive awards granted to Mr. Boynton,
Mr. Mahaffey, and Mr. Richards in fiscal 2018 would be made half in the form of performance-based restricted stock

42

units (which could be earned in amounts between 0% and 150% of the target amount) and half in the form of
time-based restricted stock units, all of which would vest over four years. We believe that time-based restricted stock
units provide a more effective retention tool while performance-based restricted stock units provide a stronger
performance driver.

The Compensation Committee decided that annual long-term equity incentive awards granted to Mr. Werner in
fiscal 2018 would be in the form of 65,000 time-based restricted stock units, all of which would vest over two years,
and 65,000 in the form of performance-based restricted stock units (which could be earned in amounts between 0%
and 150% of the target amount), all of which would vest over two years based on 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus
Program Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA, and Cash and Cash Equivalents performance goals. In addition to these annual
awards, the Compensation Committee granted an additional 90,000 performance-based restricted stock units (which
could be earned in amounts between 0% and 150% of the target amount) to Mr. Werner, to be earned based on the
achievement of performance goals tied to our 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program and our Semi-Annual Bonus
Plan, all of which would vest on March 31, 2020, as additional incentive for performance, and as a long-term
retention measure. In 2018, the Compensation Committee also decided to grant an additional 50,000 performance-
based restricted stock units (which could be earned in amounts between 0% and 150% of the target amount) to
Mr. Werner, to be earned based on the achievement of performance goals tied to corporate restructuring objectives,
all of which would vest over two years on March 31, 2020, as additional incentive for performance, and as a
long-term retention measure.

The Compensation Committee decided that annual long-term equity incentive awards granted to Dr. Mulligan
in fiscal 2018 would be in the form of 37,500 time-based restricted stock units, all of which would vest over four
years, and 37,500 in the form of performance-based restricted stock units (which could be earned in amounts between
0% and 150% of the target amount) based on 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA,
and Cash and Cash Equivalents performance goals, all of which would vest over four years. In 2018, the
Compensation Committee also decided to grant an additional 20,000 performance-based restricted stock units (which
could be earned in amounts between 0% and 150% of the target amount) to Dr. Mulligan, to be earned based on the
achievement of performance goals tied to corporate cost and expense management and cash management objectives
for his business unit, all of which would vest over four years, as additional incentive for performance, and as a
long-term retention measure.

The Compensation Committee approved a new hire grant to Mr. Sial in fiscal 2018 in the form of 100,000
time-based restricted stock units, all of which would vest over four years. In addition, the Committee approved an
additional grant of 160,000 restricted stock units in December 2019, vesting over two years, as recognition for
performance in the role and as an additional long-term retention measure.

Awards granted and earned in fiscal 2018 were as follows:

Name

Thomas Werner
Manavendra Sial(1)
Charles Boynton(2)
Kenneth Mahaffey

William Mulligan III

Douglas Richards

Time-Based
Restricted Stock
Units

Performance-Based
Restricted Stock Units
(Target)

Performance-Based
Restricted Stock Units
Earned

65,000

260,000

50,000

42,500

37,500

45,000

205,000

-0-

50,000

42,500

57,500

45,000

218,420

-0-

-0-

41,268

60,815

43,695

(1) Mr. Sial joined the Company as an Executive Vice President on May 2, 2018, and became Chief Financial Officer of the Company on May 9,

2018.

(2) Mr. Boynton served as our Chief Financial Officer until May 9, 2018, and remained an Executive Vice President of the Company through

July 1, 2018.

We used performance-based restricted stock units as incentive compensation during fiscal 2018 to align our
named executive officers’ compensation with corporate performance. In connection with our annual review of
executive officer compensation, the Compensation Committee approved performance targets for performance stock
unit awards to each of our executive officers other than our chief executive officer and Dr. Mulligan in respect of the
following: annual revenue metric (25% of the award), Adjusted EBITDA metric (25% of the award), cash and cash

43

equivalents metric (25% of the award), and corporate restructuring metrics (25% of the award), and a formula under
which actual awards would be calculated after completion of fiscal 2018. The Compensation Committee also
approved performance targets for a performance stock unit award to Dr. Mulligan in respect of the following: annual
revenue metric (33.3% of the award), Adjusted EBITDA metric (33.3% of the award), cash and cash equivalents
metric (33.3% of the award), and a formula under which the actual award would be calculated after completion of
fiscal 2018.

In addition, the Compensation Committee approved performance targets for performance stock units awarded
to our chief executive officer tied to actual payouts under our 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program and
Semi-Annual Bonus Plan. See ‘‘Executive Compensation—Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ below for more
information about these metrics, targets, and formulas.

These annual performance metrics for each of these awards were selected on the basis of the operating plan
approved by our Board after considering expectations regarding our future growth and strategy, as well as potential
challenges in achieving such growth and strategic goals. One-year performance periods provide us more flexibility
in an uncertain business environment. The performance targets were established at a level that the Compensation
Committee determined to be challenging for our named executive officers to achieve. In fiscal 2018, our named
executive officers achieved a 17% payout factor in respect of the annual revenue target, a 34% payout factor in
respect of the annual Adjusted EBITDA target, a 23% payout factor in respect of the cash and cash equivalents target,
and a 23% payout factor in respect of the corporate restructuring target, resulting in a combined 97% payout for each
of our executive officers other than Mr. Werner and Dr. Mulligan.

In fiscal 2018, Mr. Werner achieved a 23% payout factor in respect of the annual revenue target, a 46% payout
factor in respect of the annual Adjusted EBITDA target, and a 31% payout factor in respect of the cash and cash
equivalents target, resulting in a combined 99% payout on 125,000 of the performance-based stock units awarded to
him. Mr. Werner achieved a 114% payout factor in respect of achievement of 2018 Semi-Annual Bonus on 30,000
of the performance-based stock units awarded to him. Mr. Werner achieved a 120% payout factor in respect of
achievement of the corporate restructuring objectives on 50,000 of the performance-based stock units awarded to
him.

In fiscal 2018, Dr. Mulligan achieved a 23% payout factor in respect of the annual revenue target, a 46% payout
factor in respect of the annual Adjusted EBITDA target, and a 31% payout factor in respect of the cash and cash
equivalents target, resulting in a combined 99% payout on 37,500 of the performance-based stock units awarded to
him. Dr. Mulligan achieved a 118% payout factor in respect of achievement of cost, expense, and cash management
objectives on 20,000 of the performance-based stock units awarded to him.

The performance-based restricted stock units earned by our named executive officers other than our chief
executive officer began vesting in four equal annual installments, subject to continued service, starting March 1,
2019. Certain performance-based restricted stock units granted to our chief executive officer will vest in in two equal
installments, subject to continued service, starting March 31, 2019, and certain other performance-based restricted
stock units granted to our chief executive officer will vest in full on March 31, 2020, subject to continued service.

For fiscal 2018, our Compensation Committee continued to grant time-based restricted stock units that vest in
four equal annual installments to our named executive officers (two equal annual installments for our chief executive
officer), subject to continued service, starting March 1, 2019.

Perquisites and Other Compensation. As in prior years, we generally do not provide any special perquisites to
our named executive officers. We provided certain perquisites and other health and welfare and retirement benefits,
such as health, vision, and life insurance coverage and participation in and matching contributions under our 401(k)
defined contribution plan, which benefits are generally available to all employees. In 2018, we offered housing
assistance and additional travel expense reimbursement to Mr. Sial in connection with his new hire offer. The
arrangement, which is limited to the first twelve months of his employment, provides for a furnished apartment, rental
car, and reasonable travel expenses for weekly round-trip travel from St. Louis, Missouri, to San Jose, California.

For more information about

these arrangements and benefits, see footnote 4 to the ‘‘2018 Summary

Compensation Table’’ below.

Pension Benefits. None of our named executive officers participate in or have account balances in qualified or

non-qualified defined benefit plans sponsored by us.

44

Nonqualified Deferred Compensation. None of our named executive officers participate in or have account

balances in non-qualified defined contribution plans or other deferred compensation plans maintained by us.

Employment and Severance Arrangements

Change in Control Arrangements. We are party to employment agreements with certain of our executive
officers, including our named executive officers, which provide severance benefits for employment terminations in
connection with a change of control. The change of control severance arrangements generally entitle each named
executive officer to certain calculated payments tied to base salary and bonus targets and accelerated vesting of his
outstanding equity awards, but only upon termination by us without cause or by the executive for good reason (as
those terms are defined in the agreements) in connection with a change of control of the Company (a ‘‘double
trigger’’ arrangement). The Compensation Committee believes that these reinforce and encourage the continued
attention and dedication of our named executive officers to their assigned duties without the distraction arising from
the possibility of a change of control, and to enable and encourage our named executive officers to focus their
attention on obtaining the best possible outcome for our stockholders without being influenced by personal concerns
regarding the possible impact of a change of control on their job security and benefits. For more information,
see ‘‘Executive Compensation—Employment Agreements’’ and ‘‘Executive Compensation—Potential Payments Upon
Termination or Change of Control.’’

Severance Arrangements. We also maintain our 2016 Management Career Transition Plan, adopted in August
2015, which generally entitles each named executive officer to certain calculated payments tied to salary and bonus
targets, healthcare benefits, and outplacement assistance if the individual is terminated without cause. Under his
employment agreement, our chief executive officer also receives limited accelerated vesting of outstanding equity
awards if terminated without cause or if he resigns for good reason.

The Compensation Committee believes that the 2016 Management Career Transition Plan provides benefits that
are consistent with industry practice. We believe that entering into change of control and severance arrangements with
certain of our executives has helped us attract and retain excellent executive talent and that offering standard
packages avoids case-by-case negotiations. Without these provisions, our named executive officers may not have
chosen to accept employment with us or remain employed by us. The severance arrangements also promote stability
‘‘Executive
and
Compensation―Employment Agreements,’’ ‘‘Executive Compensation—2016 Management Career Transition Plan’’
and ‘‘Executive Compensation―Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change of Control’’ below.

senior management

team. For more

information,

continuity

please

our

see

in

Section 162(m) Considerations

Section 162(m) of the Code generally limits the deduction a company may take for compensation paid to certain
executive officers to the extent the compensation for any such individual exceeds $1 million for the taxable year,
unless the compensation qualifies as ‘‘qualified performance-based compensation’’ under Section 162(m) of the
Code. This exception has been repealed such that compensation paid to certain executives in excess of $1 million will
not be deductible unless it qualifies for transition relief applicable to certain arrangements in place as of November 2,
2017. Our Compensation Committee considers deductibility as one of a number of factors considered in determining
appropriate levels or methods of compensation. Accordingly, we may award compensation that is not deductible for
federal income tax purposes.

Stock Ownership Guidelines

In 2015, our Board adopted Stock Ownership Guidelines for Executives and Directors. Under these guidelines
and subject to certain exceptions, our chief executive officer is expected to own shares of our stock that have a value
equal to five times his annual salary, with ownership measured at the end of each calendar year. Although Mr. Werner
was required to satisfy the stock ownership guidelines beginning five years after their implementation in 2015, he
already owns shares with a value in excess of the guidelines. Other named executive officers are expected to own
shares that have a value equal to their annual salary beginning five years after such officer first becomes subject to
the guidelines. None of our executive officers other than Mr. Werner are currently subject to the guidelines. Shares
may be owned directly by the individual, or owned by the individual’s spouse, or held in trust for the benefit of the
individual’s spouse or family.

45

Other Disclosures

Under our insider trading policy, our executive officers, directors, and employees are prohibited from engaging
in short sales of our securities, establishing margin accounts or otherwise pledging our securities, hedging our
securities, or buying or selling options, puts, or calls on our securities.

We do not have a policy regarding adjustment or recovery of awards or payments if the relevant performance
goals or measures upon which they are based are restated or otherwise adjusted so that awards or payments are
reduced.

46

The following report has been submitted by the Compensation Committee of the Board:

COMPENSATION COMMITTEE REPORT

The Compensation Committee of the Board has reviewed and discussed our Compensation Discussion and
Analysis with management. Based on this review and discussion, the Compensation Committee recommended to the
Board that the Compensation Discussion and Analysis be included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal
year ended December 30, 2018 and definitive proxy statement on Schedule 14A for our 2019 Annual Meeting, each
as filed with the SEC. The foregoing report was submitted by the Compensation Committee of the Board and shall
not be deemed to be ‘‘soliciting material’’ or to be ‘‘filed’’ with the SEC or subject to Regulation 14A promulgated
by the SEC or Section 18 of the Exchange Act, and shall not be deemed incorporated by reference into any prior or
subsequent filing by us under the Securities Act of 1933 or the Exchange Act.

COMPENSATION COMMITTEE OF
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Helle Kristoffersen
Thomas McDaniel
Julien Pouget
Patrick Wood III, Chair

April 5, 2019

47

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

Compensation of Named Executive Officers

The 2018 Summary Compensation Table below quantifies the compensation for each of our named executive officers
for services rendered during fiscal 2018 and, as applicable, fiscal 2017 and fiscal 2016. The primary elements of each
named executive officer’s total compensation during fiscal 2018 are reported in the table below and include, among others,
base salary, performance-based cash bonuses under our 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program and Semi-Annual Bonus
Plan, awards of restricted stock units subject to time-based vesting, and awards of performance-based restricted stock units
subject to achievement of financial targets and subsequent time-based vesting.

2018 Summary Compensation Table

Name and Principal Position

Thomas Werner

Chief Executive Officer and
Chairman of the Board

Manavendra Sial

Executive Vice President
and Chief Financial Officer(5)

Charles Boynton

Executive Vice President
and Chief Financial Officer(6)

Kenneth Mahaffey

Executive Vice President
and General Counsel

William Milligan III

Former Executive Vice President,
Global Operations(7)

Douglas Richards

Executive Vice President,
Administration

Year

2018

2017

2016

2018

2018

2017

2016

2018

2017

2016

2018

2017

2018

2017

2016

Salary
($)(1)

600,000
428,154(8)
347,959(8)

Bonus
($)

Stock
Awards
($)(2)

Non-Equity
Incentive Plan
Compensation
($)(3)

All Other
Compensation
($)(4)

Total
($)

-0- 2,165,300

1,218,369

25,018

4,008,687

-0- 2,973,600

819,471

24,991

4,246,216

-0- 6,773,488

-0-

24,436

7,145,883

266,442

253,077

470,000

465,077

325,000

325,000

272,057

380,000

364,481

370,000

370,000

370,000

100,000 1,907,600

789,000

30,000

885,000

949,592

670,650

283,200

951,938

754,550

531,000

710,100

672,600

656,400

-0-

-0-

-0-

-0-

-0-

-0-

-0-

-0-

245,480

231,056

406,919

90,097

240,539

227,819

49,124

342,365

296,319

296,316

277,810

63,714

79,400

2,598,922

1,098,603

2,371,736

31,372

1,823,291

30,949

1,535,715

30,594

1,266,783

31,007

867,026

28,221

1,301,340

30,706

1,507,621

31,068

1,222,868

21,330

1,397,746

21,474

1,341,884

22,088

1,112,202

(1)

(2)

The amounts reported in this column for fiscal 2018 reflect each named executive officer’s salary for fiscal 2018 plus payments for paid
time off and holidays.

The amounts reported in the ‘‘Stock Awards’’ column for fiscal 2018 represent the aggregate grant date fair value computed in accordance
with FASB ASC Topic 718 of stock awards granted during the year (time-based and performance-based restricted stock units), excluding
the effect of certain forfeiture assumptions. For the performance-based restricted stock units reported in this column for fiscal 2018, such
amounts are based on the probable outcome of the relevant performance conditions as of the grant date. Assuming that the highest level of
performance is achieved for these awards, the grant date fair value of the performance-based restricted stock unit awards would be:
Mr. Werner, $2,518,313; Mr. Boynton, $610,500; Mr. Mahaffey, $518,925; Dr. Mulligan, $702,075; and Mr. Richards, $549,450.
See Note 17 to our consolidated financial statements in our 2018 Annual Report for details as to the assumptions used to determine the
aggregate grant date fair value of these awards. See also our discussion of stock-based compensation under ‘‘Management’s Discussion and
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Critical Accounting Estimates’’ in our 2018 Annual Report

(3)

The amounts reported in this column for fiscal 2018 reflect the amounts earned under our 2018 Annual Bonus Programs and our
Semi-Annual Bonus Plan. Additional information about non-equity incentive plan compensation earned during fiscal 2018 is set forth in
‘‘Executive Compensation—Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ below.

48

(4)

The amounts reported in this column for fiscal 2018 as ‘‘All Other Compensation’’ consist of the elements summarized in the table below.

Name

Thomas Werner
Manavendra Sial(1)
Charles Boynton(2)

Kenneth Mahaffey

William Mulligan III

Douglas Richards

Health
Benefits
($)

15,832

11,888

13,527

21,837

21,863

12,503

Group Life
Insurance
($)

936

442

428

507

593

577

401(k)
Match
($)

8,250

907

8,250

8,250

8,250

8,250

Housing &
Travel
Perquisite

66,163

Severance

Total
($)

25,018

79,400

1,076,398

1,098,603

30,594

30,706

21,330

(1) Mr. Sial joined the Company on May 2, 2018. We offered housing assistance and additional travel expense reimbursement to
Mr. Sial in connection with his new hire offer. The arrangement, which is limited to the first twelve months of his employment,
provides for a furnished apartment, rental car, and reasonable travel expenses for weekly round-trip travel from St. Louis,
Missouri, to San Jose, California.

(2) Mr. Boynton left the Company on July 1, 2018. We entered into a Separation and Release agreement with Mr. Boynton, providing
him severance consistent with the 2016 Management Career Transition Plan as set forth in ‘‘Employment and Severance Agreements’’
below. In addition, the agreement provided for accelerated vesting of 53,232 outstanding restricted stock units on July 1, 2018.

(5) Mr. Sial joined the Company as an Executive Vice President on May 2, 2018, and became Chief Financial Officer of the Company on May 9, 2018.

(6) Mr. Boynton served as our Chief Financial Officer until May 9, 2018, and remained an Executive Vice President of the Company through

July 1, 2018.

(7) Dr. Mulligan was promoted to Executive Vice President, Operations, on February 10, 2017, from his previous position as Vice President,

Upstream Strategy.

(8)

Reflects an annualized salary of $600,000, which was reduced at Mr. Werner’s request as of August 1, 2016 to $1, net of benefit costs, for
the remainder of fiscal 2016, and the reduction was extended through the first fiscal quarter of 2017. Mr. Werner’s full salary was reinstated
as of April 1, 2017.

Grants of Plan-Based Awards

During fiscal 2018, our named executive officers were granted plan-based restricted stock units and performance
stock units under our SunPower Corporation 2015 Omnibus Incentive Plan, which we refer to as our 2015 Equity
Plan. They were also granted cash bonus awards under our 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program. The following
table sets forth information regarding the stock awards and cash bonus awards granted to each named executive
officer during fiscal 2018.

2018 Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table

Name

Grant Date

Estimated Future Payouts Under
Non-Equity Incentive Plan Awards(1)
Maximum
Target
Threshold
($)
($)
($)

Estimated Future Payouts Under
Equity Incentive Plan Awards(2)
Maximum
Target
Threshold
(#)
(#)
(#)

All
Other
Stock
Awards:
Number
of Shares
of Stock
or Units
(#)

—

—

Grant Date
Fair Value
of Stock
and
Option
Awards
($)

—

—

— 529,100

— 407,000

— 244,200

— 488,400

65,000

496,600

—

—

—

—

100,000

160,000

930,000

977,600

—

—

—

—

—

—

32,500

25,000

-0-

30,000

—

—

65,000

50,000

30,000

60,000

—

—

97,500

75,000

46,875

90,000

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

25,000

50,000

75,000

— 407,000

—

—

—

50,000

382,000

Thomas Werner

Manavendra Sial

Charles Boynton

—(3)
—(4)
4/12/2018(5)
4/12/2018(5)
4/12/2018(6)
4/12/2018(7)
2/16/2018(8)
—(3)
—(4)
5/18/2018(9)
12/14/2018(10)
—(3)
—(4)
4/12/2018(11)
2/16/2018(12)

450,000

300,000

900,000

1,350,000

300,000

468,750

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

143,438

286,875

95,625

95,625

430,313

149,414

—

—

—

—

—

—

158,625

105,750

317,250

105,750

475,875

165,234

—

—

—

—

—

—

49

Name

Grant Date

Kenneth Mahaffey

William Mulligan III

Douglas Richards

—(3)
—(4)
4/12/2018(11)
2/16/2018(12)
—(3)
—(4)
4/12/2018(11)
4/12/2018(11)
2/16/2018(12)
—(3)
—(4)
04/12/2018(11)
02/16/2018(12)

Estimated Future Payouts Under
Non-Equity Incentive Plan Awards(1)
Maximum
Target
Threshold
($)
($)
($)

Estimated Future Payouts Under
Equity Incentive Plan Awards(2)
Maximum
Target
Threshold
(#)
(#)
(#)

91,407

60,938

182,813

274,220

60,938

95,216

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

128,250

256,500

85,500

85,500

384,750

133,594

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

111,000

222,000

74,000

74,000

333,000

115,625

—

—

—

—

—

—

21,250

42,500

63,750

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

18,750

10,000

37,500

20,000

56,250

30,000

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

22,500

45,000

67,500

—

—

—

45,000

All
Other
Stock
Awards:
Number
of Shares
of Stock
or Units
(#)

—

—

—

42,500

—

—

—

—

37,500

—

—

—

Grant Date
Fair Value
of Stock
and
Option
Awards
($)

—

—

345,950

324,700

—

—

305,250

162,800

286,500

—

—

366,300

343,800

(1) Additional information about estimated possible payouts under non-equity incentive plan awards is set forth above in the ‘‘Estimated

Possible Payouts Under Semi-Annual and Annual Bonus Programs Table.’’

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

The amounts reported in these columns represent performance-based restricted stock unit opportunities. The Compensation Committee
approved the awards on April 12, 2018. The grant date fair value of these awards is reported based on the probable outcome of the applicable
performance conditions and is consistent with the estimate of aggregate compensation cost, if any, expected to be recognized over the service
period determined as of the grant date under FASB ASC Topic 718, excluding the effect of estimated forfeitures. See Note 17 to our
consolidated financial statements in our 2018 Annual Report for details as to the assumptions used to determine the aggregate grant date
fair value of these awards. See also our discussion of stock-based compensation under ‘‘Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial
Condition and Results of Operations—Critical Accounting Estimates’’ in our 2018 Annual Report.

Consists of an award under our 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program. Achievement levels for certain performance targets could reduce
payouts to zero when the applicable formula is applied, as further described below.

Consists of an award under our Semi-Annual Bonus Plan. Achievement levels for certain performance targets could reduce payouts to zero
when the applicable formula is applied, as further described below.

Consists of an award of restricted stock units, subject to achievement of specific performance metrics in addition to time-based vesting
requirements, under the 2015 Equity Plan. Failure to achieve certain performance metrics could result in zero restricted stock units being
awarded. The maximum attainable award is 150% of target. The closing price of our common stock was $8.14 on April 12, 2018. Actual
awards were determined in the first quarter of 2019 and are described in ‘‘Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ below. The earned award
vests ratably on March 1, 2019 and March 1, 2020.

Consists of an award of restricted stock units, subject to achievement of specific performance metrics in addition to time-based vesting
requirements, under the 2015 Equity Plan. Failure to achieve certain performance metrics could result in zero restricted stock units being
awarded. The maximum attainable award is 156.25% of target. The closing price of our common stock was $8.14 on April 12, 2018. Actual
awards were determined in the first quarter of 2019 and are described in ‘‘Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ below. The earned award
vests in full on March 31, 2020.

Consists of an award of restricted stock units, subject to achievement of specific performance metrics in addition to time-based vesting
requirements, under the 2015 Equity Plan. Failure to achieve certain performance metrics could result in zero restricted stock units being
awarded. The maximum attainable award is 150% of target. The closing price of our common stock was $8.14 on April 12, 2018. Actual
awards were determined in the first quarter of 2019 and are described in ‘‘Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ below. The earned award
vests in full on March 31, 2020.

Consists of an award of restricted stock units, subject to time-based vesting requirements, under the 2015 Equity Plan. The closing price
of our common stock was $7.64 on February 16, 2018. The award vests ratably on March 31, 2019 and March 31, 2020.

Consists of an award of restricted stock units, subject to time-based vesting requirements, under the 2015 Equity Plan. The closing price
of our common stock was $9.30 on May 18, 2018. The award vests ratably on May 5, 2019, May 5, 2020, May 5, 2021, and May 5, 2022.

(10) Consists of an award of restricted stock units, subject to time-based vesting requirements, under the 2015 Equity Plan. The closing price

of our common stock was $6.11 on December 14, 2018. The award vests ratably on December 5, 2019 and December 5, 2020.

(11) Consists of an award of restricted stock units, subject to achievement of specific performance metrics in addition to time-based vesting
requirements, under the 2015 Equity Plan. Failure to achieve certain performance metrics could result in zero restricted stock units being
awarded. The maximum attainable award is 150% of target. The closing price of our common stock was $8.14 on April 12, 2018. Actual
awards were determined in the first quarter of 2019 and are described in ‘‘Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ below. The earned award
vests ratably on March 1, 2019, March 1, 2020, March 1, 2021, and March 1, 2022.

(12) Consists of an award of restricted stock units, subject to time-based vesting requirements, under the 2015 Equity Plan. The closing price
of our common stock was $7.64 on February 16, 2018. The award vests ratably on March 1, 2019, March 1, 2020, March 1, 2021, and
March 1, 2022.

50

Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation

2018 Annual Bonus Programs. In 2018, we maintained four tailored bonus programs under our Executive
Annual Bonus Plan (collectively, the ‘‘Annual Bonus Programs’’). Awards under each of the Annual Bonus Programs,
including the 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program, were formula-driven. Each of our named executive officers
were participants in the 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program, and none participated in or received payments under
any of the other Annual Bonus Programs, and accordingly, those programs are not discussed in detail here.

2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program. At the beginning of fiscal 2018, the Compensation Committee
established and approved minimum, target, and maximum levels in respect of three performance criteria for the 2018
Corporate Annual Bonus Program: (1) an annual revenue metric, (2) an annual Adjusted EBITDA metric, and (3) a
cash and cash equivalents metric. We refer to this score as our Combined Corporate Metrics score. In addition, we
introduced a safety modifier based on the company’s Total Recordable Injury Rate for the year.

Our annual revenue metric is based on our non-GAAP annual revenue. Our annual Adjusted EBITDA metric is based
on our annual earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, with certain adjustments such as amounts
related to utility and power plant projects and the sale of operating lease assets, as further described in ‘‘Use of Non-GAAP
Financial Measures.’’ Our cash and cash equivalents metric is as measured on the Company’s balance sheet as of the end
of the fiscal year. Each of these measures is subject to adjustment to exclude the effect of certain transactions outside of
the normal course of business, as well as other events as specified in the Annual Executive Bonus Plan and the applicable
2018 Annual Bonus Program. Each named executive officer would earn: (i) 33.3% of his target bonus under the 2018
Corporate Annual Bonus Program upon the achievement of the revenue target, (ii) 33.3% of his target bonus under the
2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program upon the achievement of the Adjusted EBITDA target, and (iii) 33.3% of his target
bonus under the 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program upon achievement of the cash and cash equivalents target. In order
to encourage our named executive officers to exceed the performance targets, our Compensation Committee set the
maximum payment under the program at 150% of target. Payment for each target is determined based on performance
achievement relative to minimum, target, and maximum levels, as follows:

Performance Level Achieved

Below minimum
At minimum
Between minimum and target
At target
Between target and maximum
At or above maximum

Bonus Payment as Percentage of Bonus Target

No bonus paid
50% of target bonus (minimum award for minimum achievement)
Prorated on a straight-line basis, between 50% and 100%
100% of target
Prorated on a straight-line basis, between 100% and 150%
150% of target

The annual performance targets, set at the beginning of fiscal 2018, were assessed at the end of the year. Based
on our actual results in fiscal 2018, results were calculated for each of the targets, as presented below in the aggregate
(in millions of dollars).

Performance Criterion

Revenue
Adjusted EBITDA
Adjusted Cash and Cash Equivalents

Minimum

$1,660
$
0
$ 150

Target

$2,075
$
68
$ 340

Maximum

Achievement

Payment as % of
Target Payment

$2,490
$ 125
$ 500

$1,815
$ 111
$ 309

23%
46%
31%

The safety modifier based on the company’s Total Recordable Injury Rate (TRIR) for the year, set at the
beginning of fiscal 2018, was also assessed at the end of the year, and applied to the bonus payout. The maximum
payout modifier for TRIR was set to 110% for achieving a .90 TRIR or below and the minimum payout modifier for
TRIR was set to 90% for achieving a TRIR of 1.10 or greater. Achieving a TRIR result of 1.00 would result in a TRIR
modifier equal to 100%. Based on our actual results in fiscal 2018, results were calculated in comparison to the target,
as presented below.

Performance Criterion

Minimum

SunPower Total Recordable Injury Rate

1.10

Target

1.00

Maximum

Achievement

Payment as % of
Target Payment

.90

1.02

98%

51

Based on the actual results achieved, bonuses were earned and paid to our named executive officers at 97.4%

in the aggregate.

Semi-Annual Bonus Plan. Awards under the Semi-Annual Bonus Plan were also formula-driven, with targets
in respect of a semi-annual Adjusted EBITDA metric and corporate performance metrics, consisting of a set of
corporate milestones representing key results in support our corporate business plan. The Adjusted EBITDA metric
is as measured of the Company’s profitability. Each named executive officer is further assigned an individual
modifier by his or her manager, or, in the case of our chief executive officer, by the Board, meant to take into account
individual performance and accomplishments. These metrics were then incorporated into the plan’s formula. Each
named executive officer’s individual modifier could result in no award being payable even if we achieved our
quarterly profitability metric and corporate key results targets in the event that the individual modifier was
determined to be zero. If threshold corporate key results were achieved and we exceeded our semi-annual Adjusted
EBITDA target, bonus payments could exceed 100% of target, up to a maximum payment of 156.25% (based on the
semi-annual Adjusted EBITDA metric), depending on the individual modifier.

Payments under the Semi-Annual Bonus Plan were made as follows:

Achievement of Semi-Annual
Profitability Metric Target

Achievement of Corporate
Key Results

Payment

Under target

Under 60%

No payment

Between target and maximum

60% or over but under 80% 50% payment

Payment = 2018 semi-annual salary multiplied
by Semi-Annual Bonus Plan target bonus (%)
multiplied by semi-annual Adjusted EBITDA
metric achievement (up to a maximum of 125%)
multiplied by individual modifier (up to a
maximum of 125%) multiplied by 50%

At target

80% or over

100% payment

Between target and maximum

80% or over

Greater than 100% payment

Payment = 2018 semi-annual salary multiplied
by Semi-Annual Bonus Plan target bonus (%)
multiplied by semi-annual profitability metric
achievement (up to a maximum of 125%)
multiplied by individual modifier (up to a
maximum of 125%)

Payment = 2018 semi-annual salary multiplied
by Semi-Annual Bonus Plan target bonus (%)
multiplied by semi-annual profitability metric
achievement (up to a maximum of 125%)
multiplied by individual modifier (up to a
maximum of 125%)

Under target

80% or over

No payment

Quarterly corporate milestones in fiscal 2018 included sensitive business objectives applicable to our entire
company, focusing on strategic transactions, revenue and margin targets, confidential cost and production targets,
technology milestones, bookings targets, major customer transactions, new product development, and manufacturing
plans and enhancements. The quarterly corporate key results scores were 85.6%, 82.3%, 84.5%, and 92.2% for each
quarter in fiscal 2018, respectively. Individual modifiers for the named executive officers ranged from 90% to 100%,
and averaged 97%, for both the first half and the second half of fiscal 2018.

Equity Incentive Plan Compensation

In addition to time-based restricted stock unit awards, to further align executive compensation with maximizing
stockholder value, our Compensation Committee granted to our named executive officers certain performance-based
equity awards, consisting of restricted stock units, or RSUs, that would be released and begin time-based vesting only
upon achievement of certain corporate or individual performance objectives.

52

Our Compensation Committee met at the beginning of 2018 and established and approved target levels in
respect of four performance criteria for our traditional performance-based equity awards to named executive officers
other than Mr. Werner and Dr. Mulligan: (1) an annual revenue metric, (2) an annual Adjusted EBITDA metric, (3) an
annual cash and cash equivalents metric, and (4) an annual operating expense and cost of goods sold overhead
reduction metric. Each eligible named executive officer would earn 25% of his target performance-based RSUs upon
the achievement of the annual revenue metric target, 25% of his target performance-based RSUs upon the
achievement of the Adjusted EBITDA metric target, 25% of his target performance-based RSUs upon the
achievement of the cash and cash equivalents target and the remaining 25% of his target performance-based RSUs
upon the achievement of the operating expense and cost of goods sold overhead reduction target. The three financial
metrics (Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA, and Cash and Cash Equivalents) and their corresponding targets are the same
as those for our 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program (and the Corporate Metrics Score portion of each of the other
2018 Annual Bonus Programs), described above in ‘‘Executive Compensation—Non-Equity Incentive Plan
Compensation.’’ Payment for each target was determined based on the performance metric achieved relative to
minimum, target, and maximum performance levels, as shown in the table below.

The Compensation Committee approved performance targets for our traditional performance-based equity
awards to Mr. Werner and Dr. Mulligan in respect of the following: annual revenue metric (33.3% of the award),
Adjusted EBITDA metric (33.3% of the award), cash and cash equivalents metric (33.3% of the award). The three
financial metrics and their corresponding targets are the same as those for our 2018 Corporate Annual Bonus Program
(and the Corporate Metrics Score portion of each of the other 2018 Annual Bonus Programs), described above in
‘‘Executive Compensation—Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation.’’ Payment for each target was determined
based on the performance metric achieved relative to minimum, target, and maximum performance levels, as shown
in the table below.

The Compensation Committee approved performance targets for a special performance-based equity award with
a target of 50,000 restricted stock units to Mr. Werner in respect of two performance criteria: (1) an annual operating
expense and cost of goods sold overhead reduction metric, and (2) reorganization of corporate operating expense into
the business units. Mr. Werner would earn 50% of these performance-based restricted stock units upon the
achievement of each metric, respectively. The annual operating expense and cost of goods sold overhead reduction
metrics and targets were the same as those specified in annual performance-based equity awards to the other named
executive officers. Payment for each metric was determined based on the performance relative to minimum, target,
and maximum performance levels, as shown in the table below.

In addition, the Compensation Committee approved performance targets for a special performance-based equity
award with a target of 20,000 restricted stock units to Dr. Mulligan in respect of two performance criteria: (1) an
annual operating expense and cost of goods sold overhead reduction metric, and (2) business unit cash management.
Dr. Mulligan would earn 50% of these performance-based restricted stock units upon the achievement of each metric,
respectively. The annual operating expense and cost of goods sold overhead reduction metrics and targets were the
same as those specified in annual performance-based equity awards to the other named executive officers. Payment
for each metric was determined based on the performance relative to minimum, target, and maximum performance
levels, as shown in the table below.

Percentage of Performance Target Achieved

Grant of RSUs as Percentage of Target RSUs

Below minimum

At minimum

No RSUs earned

50% of target RSUs (minimum award for minimum achievement)

Between minimum and target

Prorated on a straight-line basis, between 50% and 100%

At target

100% of target

Between target and maximum

Prorated on a straight-line basis, between 100% and 150%

At or above maximum

150% of target

The performance-based restricted stock units earned by our named executive officers other than our chief
executive officer began vesting in four equal annual installments, subject to continued service, starting March 1,
2019. Certain performance-based restricted stock units granted to our chief executive officer will vest in two equal
installments, subject to continued service, starting March 31, 2019, and certain other performance-based restricted
stock units granted to our chief executive officer will vest in full on March 31, 2020, subject to continued service.

53

For fiscal 2018, our Compensation Committee continued to grant time-based restricted stock units that vest in
four equal annual installments to our named executive officers (two equal annual installments for our chief executive
officer), subject to continued service, starting March 1, 2019.

With respect to our 2018 performance-based equity awards to named executive officers other than Mr. Werner
and Dr. Mulligan, we achieved 17% of our annual revenue metric target, 34% of our Adjusted EBITDA metric target,
23% of our cash and cash equivalents metric target, and 23% of our operating expense and cost of goods sold
overhead reduction metric target. Based on our actual results in fiscal 2018, performance-based restricted stock units
were earned by such named executive officers for achievement of each of these metric targets.

With respect to our 2018 regular performance-based equity awards to Mr. Werner and Dr. Mulligan, we achieved
23% of our annual revenue metric target, 46% of our Adjusted EBITDA metric target, and 31% of our cash and cash
equivalents metric target. Based on our actual results in fiscal 2018, performance-based restricted stock units were
earned by Mr. Werner and Dr. Mulligan for achievement of each of these metric targets.

With respect to our 2018 special performance-based equity award of 50,000 units to Mr. Werner, we achieved
45% of our operating expense and cost of goods sold overhead reduction metric target and 75% of our corporate
operating expense reorganization metric target.

The named executive officers’ targets and earned performance-based RSUs are described above in

‘‘Compensation Discussion and Analysis—Analysis of Fiscal 2018 Compensation Decisions—Equity Awards.’’

Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year-End

The following table sets forth information regarding the outstanding equity awards held by our named executive

officers as of December 30, 2018.

54

Name
Thomas Werner

Manavendra Sial

Kenneth Mahaffey

William Mulligan III

Douglas Richards

Outstanding Equity Awards at 2018 Fiscal Year-End Table

Stock Awards

Number of Shares or
Units of Stock That
Have Not Vested
(#)
10,275
8,610
35,800
120,000
17,700
90,000
112,500
112,500
65,000
65,000
60,000
60,000
34,170

Market Value of
Shares or Units of
Stock That Have
Not Vested
($)(1)
51,991
43,567
181,148
607,200
89,562
455,400
569,250
569,250
328,900
328,900
303,600
303,600
172,900

100,000
160,000

6,930
4,250
1,200
25,000
30,000
42,500
42,500

4,500
28,125
28,125
37,500
37,500
23,540

2,153
7,500
35,625
35,625
45,000
45,000

506,000
809,600

35,066
21,505
6,072
126,500
151,800
215,050
215,050

22,770
142,313
142,313
189,750
189,750
119,111

10,894
37,950
180,263
180,263
227,700
227,700

Grant Date
03/31/2016(2)
03/31/2016(3)
03/31/2016(4)
03/31/2016(5)
03/10/2017(6)
03/10/2017(6)
03/10/2017(7)
03/10/2017(8)
02/16/2018(9)
04/12/2018(10)
04/12/2018(10)
04/12/2018(11)
04/12/2018(11)

05/18/2018(12)
12/14/2018(13)

01/27/2016(14)
03/21/2016(4)
03/21/2016(4)
11/01/2016(15)
03/10/2017(7)
02/26/2018(16)
02/26/2018(17)

03/21/2016(4)
03/10/2017(7)
03/10/2017(8)
02/16/018(16)
04/12/2018(17)
04/12/2018(17)

02/22/2016(18)
02/22/2016(4)
03/10/2017(7)
03/10/2017(8)
02/16/2018(16)
02/16/2018(17)

(1)

The closing price of our common stock on December 28, 2018 (the last trading day of fiscal 2018) was $5.06.

(2) On March 31, 2016, the named executive officer was awarded a number of performance-based restricted stock units within a pre-set range,
with the actual number contingent on the achievement of certain performance criteria. The actual award was determined in the first quarter
of 2017. The earned award vests in four equal annual installments on March 1, 2017, March 1, 2018, March 1, 2019, and March 1, 2020,
subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(3) On March 31, 2016, the named executive officer was awarded a number of performance-based restricted stock units within a pre-set range,
with the actual number contingent on the achievement of certain performance criteria. The actual award was determined in the first quarter
of 2017. The earned award vests in full on March 31, 2020, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(4)

Each of these awards of restricted stock units provided for vesting in four equal annual installments on each of March 1, 2017, March 1,
2018, March 1, 2019, and March 1, 2020, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

55

(5)

Each of these awards of restricted stock units provided for one-time vesting on March 31, 2020 subject to the recipient’s continued
employment with us.

(6) On March 10, 2017, the named executive officer was awarded a number of performance-based restricted stock units within a pre-set range,
with the actual number contingent on the achievement of certain performance criteria. The actual award was determined in the first quarter
of 2018 and is described in ‘‘Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ above. The earned award vests in full on March 31, 2020, subject to
the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(7) On March 10, 2017, the named executive officer was awarded a number of performance-based restricted stock units within a pre-set range,
with the actual number contingent on the achievement of certain performance criteria. The actual award was determined in the first quarter
of 2018 and is described in ‘‘Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ above. The earned award vests in four equal annual installments on
March 1, 2018, March 1, 2019, March 1, 2020, and March 1, 2021, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(8)

(9)

Each of these awards of restricted stock units provided for vesting in four equal annual installments on each of March 1, 2018, March 1,
2019, March 1, 2020, and March 1, 2021, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

Each of these awards of restricted stock units provided for vesting in two equal annual installments on each of March 1, 2019 and March 1,
2020, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(10) On April 12, 2018, the named executive officer was awarded a number of performance-based restricted stock units within a pre-set range,
with the actual number contingent on the achievement of certain performance criteria. The actual award was determined in the first quarter
of 2019 and is described in ‘‘Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ above. The earned award vests in two equal annual installments on
March 1, 2019 and March 1, 2020, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(11) On April 12, 2018, the named executive officer was awarded a number of performance-based restricted stock units within a pre-set range,
with the actual number contingent on the achievement of certain performance criteria. The actual award was determined in the first quarter
of 2019 and is described in ‘‘Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ above. The earned award will vest on March 31, 2020, subject to the
recipient’s continued employment with us.

(12) Each of these awards of restricted stock units provided for vesting in three equal annual installments on each of May 5, 2019, May 5, 2020,

May 5, 2021, and May 5, 2022, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(13) Each of these awards of restricted stock units provided for vesting in two equal annual installments on each of December 5, 2019 and

December 5, 2020, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(14) Each of these awards of restricted stock units provided for vesting in four equal annual installments on each of January 25, 2017, January 25,

2018, January 25, 2019, and January 25, 2020, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(15) Each of these awards of restricted stock units provided for vesting in four equal annual installments on each of November 1, 2017,

November 1, 2018, November 1, 2019, and November 1, 2020, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(16) Each of these awards of restricted stock units provided for vesting in three equal annual installments on each of March 01, 2019, March 01,

2020, March 01, 2021, and March 01, 2022, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(17) On April 12, 2018, the named executive officer was awarded a number of performance-based restricted stock units within a pre-set range,
with the actual number contingent on the achievement of certain performance criteria. The actual award was determined in the first quarter
of 2019 and is described in ‘‘Equity Incentive Plan Compensation’’ above. The earned award vests in four equal annual installments on
March 1, 2019, March 1, 2020, March 1, 2021, and March 1, 2022, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

(18) On February 22, 2016, the named executive officer was awarded a number of performance-based restricted stock units within a pre-set range,
with the actual number contingent on the achievement of certain performance criteria. The actual award was determined in the first quarter
of 2017. The earned award vests in four equal annual installments on each March 1, 2017, March 1, 2018, March 1, 2019, and March 1,
2020, subject to the recipient’s continued employment with us.

The following table sets forth the number of shares acquired pursuant to the vesting of stock awards held by our
named executive officers during fiscal 2018 and the aggregate dollar amount realized by our named executive officers
upon such events. Because there were no shares acquired by our named executive officers pursuant to the exercise
of options during fiscal 2018, we have not included columns pertaining to option awards in the table below.

2018 Option Exercises and Stock Vested Table

Name
Thomas Werner
Manavendra Sial(2)
Charles Boynton(3)
Kenneth Mahaffey
William Mulligan III
Douglas Richards

Stock Awards

Number of Shares
Acquired on Vesting
(#)
128,031
-0-
103,476
32,451
26,000
39,366

Value Realized
on Vesting
($)(1)
903,899
-0-
763,012
221,744
181,560
277,924

(1)

The aggregate dollar value realized upon the vesting of a stock award represents the fair market value of the underlying shares on the vesting
date multiplied by the number of shares vested.

(2) Mr. Sial joined in the company as of May 2, 2018 as Executive Vice President, and assumed the position of Chief Financial Officer on

May 9, 2018.

(3) Mr. Boynton served as our Chief Financial Officer until May 9, 2018, and remained an Executive Vice President of the Company through

July 1, 2018.

56

Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change of Control

Tabular Disclosure of Termination Payments. Our employment agreements with our named executive officers
contain provisions that provide for payments upon certain events of termination and change of control.
See ‘‘Employment and Severance Agreements’’ below for a detailed description of these agreements. The following
tables summarize the estimated payments that would have been made on December 30, 2018 which our named
executive officers would be eligible to receive upon the following termination events, assuming each such event had
occurred on December 28, 2018, the last business day of fiscal 2018:

•

•

•

•

•

termination with cause or voluntary resignation without good reason;

involuntary termination without cause or voluntary resignation for good reason in connection with a change
of control;

involuntary termination without cause or voluntarily resignation for good reason not in connection with a
change of control;

retirement; or

discontinued service due to death or disability.

The dollar value identified with respect to each type of equity award is based on each named executive officer’s
accelerated restricted stock units as of December 30, 2018 and is based on the $5.06 per share closing price for our
common stock on December 28, 2018, the last trading day of fiscal 2018. No named executive officers held unvested
stock options as of December 30, 2018. For more information on each officer’s outstanding equity awards as of
December 30, 2018, please see the ‘‘Outstanding Equity Awards At 2018 Fiscal-Year End Table’’ above. The tables
do not include unpaid regular salary, nor the impact of certain ‘‘best net’’ provisions of each named executive officer’s
employment agreement that provides that, in the event any payments under such employment agreement would
constitute parachute payments under Section 280G of the Code or be subject to the excise tax of Section 4999 of the
Code, then such payments should be either delivered in full or reduced to result in no portion being subject to such
tax provisions and still yield the greatest payment to the individual on an after tax basis.

57

Termination Payments Table

Name

Thomas Werner

Manavendra Sial

Charles Boynton

Kenneth Mahaffey(3)

Termination Scenario

Termination with cause or
voluntary resignation without
good reason

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
in connection with change of
control

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
not in connection with
change of control

Retirement

Death or disability

Termination with cause or
voluntary resignation without
good reason

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
in connection with change of
control

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
not in connection with
change of control

Retirement

Death or disability

Termination with cause or
voluntary resignation without
good reason

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
in connection with change of
control

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
not in connection with
change of control

Retirement

Death or disability

Termination with cause or
voluntary resignation without
good reason

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
in connection with change of
control

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
not in connection with
change of control

Retirement

Death or disability

Bonus and
Accelerated
Non-Equity
Incentive
Plan Awards
($)

Continued
Salary
($)

Accelerated
Restricted
Stock Units
($)(1)(2)

Continued
Medical
Benefits
and Gross
Up ($)

Outplace-
ment
Services ($)

Accrued
Paid Time
Off and
Sabbatical
($)

Total ($)

—

—

—

—

—

69,231

69,231

1,200,000

2,400,000

4,001,473

70,325

15,000

69,231

7,756,029

1,200,000

1,200,000

1,686,498

70,325

15,000

69,231

4,241,054

—

—

—

—

—

— 3,933,568

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

69,231

69,231

69,231

4,002,799

—

—

850,000

765,000

1,315,600

77,240

15,000

— 3,022,840

425,000

382,500

— 77,240

15,000

—

—

—

—

— 1,315,600

—

—

—

—

—

—

899,740

—

— 1,315,600

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

470,000

166,385

408,289

16,724

15,000

1,076,398

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

650,000

487,500

764,809

102,064

15,000

— 2,019,373

325,000

243,750

— 102,064

15,000

—

—

—

—

—

771,043

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

685,814

—

771,043

58

Name

Termination Scenario

William Mulligan III(4) Termination with cause or

Douglas Richards

voluntary resignation without
good reason

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
in connection with change of
control

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
not in connection with
change of control

Retirement

Death or disability

Termination with cause or
voluntary resignation without
good reason

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
in connection with change of
control

Involuntary termination
without cause or voluntary
resignation for good reason
not in connection with
change of control

Retirement

Death or disability

Bonus and
Accelerated
Non-Equity
Incentive
Plan Awards
($)

Continued
Salary
($)

Accelerated
Restricted
Stock Units
($)(1)(2)

Continued
Medical
Benefits
and Gross
Up ($)

Outplace-
ment
Services ($)

Accrued
Paid Time
Off and
Sabbatical
($)

Total ($)

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

760,000

684,000

804,869

102,064

15,000

—

2,365,933

380,000

342,000

— 102,064

15,000

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

788,095

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

839,064

—

788,095

—

740,000

592,000

858,166

51,306

15,000

—

2,256,472

370,000

296,000

—

—

—

—

—

—

864,769

51,306

15,000

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

732,306

—

864,769

(1)

In connection with a change of control, accelerated restricted stock units’ calculation assumes that the change of control does not involve
Total or one of its affiliates.

(2) Awards under the SunPower Corporation 2015 Omnibus Incentive Plan provide for accelerated vesting upon death or disability.

(3) Mr. Mahaffey was promoted to Executive Vice President and General Counsel on November 1, 2016, from his previous position as General

Counsel, Global Business Units.

(4) Dr. Mulligan was promoted to Executive Vice President, Operations, on February 10, 2017, from his previous position as Vice President,

Upstream Strategy.

Employment and Severance Agreements

We have entered into employment agreements with certain of our executive officers, including our named
executive officers. In August 2015, we adopted a severance policy entitled the 2016 Management Career Transition
Plan, which replaced our 2014 Management Career Transition Plan. Additionally, our named executive officers are
entitled to receive certain payments from us or our affiliates in the event of certain termination events in connection
with a change of control.

Employment Agreements. We are party to employment agreements with several executive officers, including the
named executive officers. Each employment agreement provides that the executive’s employment is ‘‘at-will’’ and may be
terminated at any time by either party. Each employment agreement generally provides for a three-year term that will
automatically renew unless we provide notice of our intent not to renew at least 120 days before the renewal date. The
agreements do not specify salary, bonus, or other basic compensation terms, but instead provide that each executive’s base
salary, annual bonus, and equity compensation will be determined in accordance with our normal practices. The primary
purpose of the agreements is to provide certain severance benefits for employment terminations in connection with a
change of control (as defined in the agreement). In the event an executive’s employment is terminated by us without cause
(as defined in the agreement), or if the executive resigns for good reason (as defined in the agreement), and if such
termination or resignation occurs during the period three months prior to, and ending 36 months following, a change of
control, then the agreements also provide that the executive is entitled to the following benefits:

•

a lump-sum payment equivalent to 24 months of such executive’s base salary;

59

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

a lump-sum payment equal to any earned but unpaid annual bonus for a completed fiscal year;

a lump-sum payment equal to the product of (a) such executive’s target bonus for the then current fiscal
year, multiplied by (b) two;

continuation of such executive’s and such executive’s eligible dependents’ coverage under our benefit plans
for up to 24 months, at our expense;

a lump-sum payment equal to such executive’s accrued and unpaid base salary and paid time off;

reimbursement of up to $15,000 for services of an outplacement firm mutually acceptable to us and the
executive;

annual make-up payments for taxes incurred by the executive in connection with benefit plans’ coverage; and

all of such executive’s unvested options, shares of restricted stock and restricted stock units (including
performance-based restricted stock units) will become fully vested and (as applicable) exercisable as of the
termination date and remain exercisable for the time period otherwise applicable to such equity awards
following such termination date. In addition, Mr. Werner’s agreement provides for full accelerated vesting
upon termination of employment without cause or resignation for good reason, regardless of whether such
termination is in connection with a change of control; provided, however, that absent a change of control,
no such accelerated vesting or lapsing shall apply to Mr. Werner’s performance-based equity awards.

Under the employment agreements, ‘‘cause’’ means the occurrence of any of the following, as determined by

us in good faith:

•

•

•

•

acts or omissions constituting gross negligence or willful misconduct on the part of the executive with
respect to the executive’s obligations or otherwise relating to our business,

the executive’s conviction of, or plea of guilty or nolo contendere to, crimes involving fraud,
misappropriation or embezzlement, or a felony crime of moral turpitude,

the executive’s violation or breach of any fiduciary duty (whether or not involving personal profit) to us,
except to the extent that his violation or breach was reasonably based on the advice of our outside counsel,
or willful violation of any of our published policies governing the conduct of it executives or other
employees, or

the executive’s violation or breach of any contractual duty to us which duty is material to the performance
of the executive’s duties or results in material damage to us or our business;

provided that if any of the foregoing events is capable of being cured, we will provide notice to the executive

describing the nature of such event and the executive will thereafter have 30 days to cure such event.

In addition, under the employment agreements, ‘‘good reason’’ means the occurrence of any of the following

without the executive’s express prior written consent:

•

•

•

•

a material reduction in the executive’s position or duties,

a material breach of the employment agreement,

a material reduction in the executive’s aggregate target compensation, including the executive’s base salary
and target bonus on a combined basis, excluding a reduction that is applied to substantially all of our other
senior executives; provided, however, that for purposes of this clause, whether a reduction in target bonus
has occurred shall be determined without any regard to any actual bonus payments made to the executive,
or

a relocation of the executive’s primary place of business for the performance of his duties to us to a location
that is more than 45 miles from our current business location.

The executive shall be considered to have ‘‘good reason’’ under the employment agreement only if, no later than
90 days following an event otherwise constituting ‘‘good reason’’ under the employment agreement, the executive
gives notice to us of the occurrence of such event and we fail to cure the event within 30 days following its receipt
of such notice from the executive, and the executive terminates service within 36 months following a change of
control.

60

If any of the severance payments, accelerated vesting and lapsing of restrictions would constitute a ‘‘parachute
payment’’ within the meaning of Section 280G of the Code and be subject to excise tax or any interest or penalties
payable with respect to such excise tax, then the executive’s benefits will be either delivered in full or delivered as
to such lesser extent which would result in no portion of such benefits being subject to such taxes, interest or
penalties, whichever results in the executive receiving, on an after-tax basis, the greatest amount of benefits.

Before receiving the benefits described in the employment agreements, the executive will be required to sign a
separation agreement and release of claims. In addition, the benefits will be conditioned upon the executive not
soliciting our or our affiliates’ (as defined in the employment agreement) employees, consultants, customers, or users
for one year following the termination date. Mr. Werner’s agreement also provides that, if his termination without
cause or resignation for good reason is not in connection with a change of control, his severance benefits will be
conditioned upon a non-competition arrangement lasting one year following employment termination.

2016 Management Career Transition Plan. In August 2015, we adopted the 2016 Management Career Transition
Plan, (the ‘‘Severance Plan’’), which replaced our 2014 Management Career Transition Plan. The Severance Plan generally
terminates on the third anniversary of the effective date. The Severance Plan addresses severance for certain employment
terminations, and payments are only made if the executive or employee is not already entitled to severance benefits under
a separate employment agreement. Participants in the Severance Plan include our Chief Executive Officer, Thomas Werner,
and those employees who have been employed by the Company for at least six months and report directly to him (including
our other named executive officers), as well as other key employees of the Company who are provided with written notice
from the chief executive officer that they are Severance Plan participants. Under the terms of the Severance Plan,
Mr. Werner and the other named executive officers will be eligible for benefits following a termination of employment by
us without cause (as defined in the Severance Plan). Such benefits include:

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

a lump-sum payment equivalent to 12 months (or 24 months in Mr. Werner’s case) of such executive’s base
salary;

a lump-sum payment equal to any earned but unpaid annual bonus for a completed fiscal year;

a lump-sum payment equal to the pro rata portion of such executive’s actual bonus for the then current
fiscal year, based on the number of whole calendar months between the start of the fiscal year and the
termination date;

continuation of such executive’s and such executive’s eligible dependents’ coverage under the Company’s
health benefit plans for up to 12 months (or 24 months in Mr. Werner’s case), at the Company’s expense;

a lump-sum payment equal to such executive’s accrued and unpaid base salary and paid time off;

annual make-up payments for taxes incurred by the executive in connection with such health benefit plans’
coverage; and

reimbursement of up to $15,000 for services of an outplacement firm mutually acceptable to the Company
and the executive.

CEO Pay Ratio

Pursuant

to Section 953(b) of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, and
Item 402(u) of Regulation S-K, we are required to provide the following information about the relationship of the
annual total compensation of Thomas Werner, our chief executive officer (the ‘‘CEO’’), to the median of the annual
total compensation of all of our employees, excluding Mr. Werner:

For fiscal 2018, our last completed fiscal year:
•

we have estimated the median of the annual total compensation of all our employees, excluding Mr. Werner,
to be $9,450; and

• Mr. Werner’s annual total compensation, for purposes of determining the CEO Pay Ratio, was $4,009,187.

Based on this information, for fiscal 2018, the ratio of the annual total compensation of Mr. Werner, our CEO,
to the median of the annual total compensation of all our employees, excluding Mr. Werner, was estimated to be
424:1. This pay ratio is a reasonable estimate calculated in a manner consistent with SEC rules based on our payroll
and employment records and the methodology and assumptions described below. Our pay ratio is not an element that
the Compensation Committee considers in setting the compensation of our CEO, nor is our CEO’s compensation a
material element that management considers in making compensation decisions for non-officer employees.

61

Item 402(u) of Regulation S-K requires companies to identify the median employee only once every three years.
We identified the median employee in 2018, and we believe that changes in our employee population or employee
compensation arrangements since we identified the median employee do not result in a significant change to our pay
ratio disclosure. The employee population decreased 10% during such time period with no significant change to
employee compensation arrangements, and the percentage of U.S. employees of the total global workforce did not
change from approximately 15%.

The median employee identified in 2018 terminated employment with the company during 2018. As allowed
under Item 402(u) of Regulation S-K, we have substituted the terminated employee with another employee with
substantially similar compensation as the terminated employee, based on the compensation measures used to select
the original median employee. The ‘‘median employee’’ is a full-time, hourly employee located in Mexico. We totaled
all of the elements of the employee’s compensation for fiscal 2018 in accordance with the requirements of the
applicable SEC rules and converted the amounts from Mexican Pesos to U.S. dollars using the relevant monthly
average currency exchange rate of 18.7152 Mexican Pesos per U.S. dollar. This resulted in an annual total
compensation of $9,450, of which $6,389 is base salary and $3,061 is comprised of bonus and other compensation
such as overtime pay and other cash allowances.

With respect to the annual total compensation of our chief executive officer, we took the amount reported in the

‘‘Total’’ column of our 2018 Summary Compensation Table.

Because the SEC rules for identifying the median of the annual total compensation of our employees and
calculating the pay ratio based on that employee’s annual total compensation allow companies to adopt a variety of
methodologies, to apply certain exclusions, and to make reasonable estimates and assumptions that reflect their
employee populations and compensation practices, the pay ratio reported by other companies may not be comparable
to the pay ratio for our Company, as other companies have headquarters offices in different countries, have different
employee populations and compensation practices and may utilize different methodologies, exclusions, estimates and
assumptions in calculating their pay ratios.

62

SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF MANAGEMENT AND CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS

The following table sets forth certain information regarding beneficial ownership of our common stock as of

March 21, 2019 (except as described below) by:

•

•

•

•

each of our directors;

our ‘‘named executive officers’’;

our directors, director nominees, and executive officers as a group; and

each person (including any ‘‘group’’ as that term is used in Section 13(d)(3) of the Exchange Act) who is
known by us to beneficially own more than 5% of any class of our common stock.

Applicable beneficial ownership percentages listed below are based on 142,372,724 shares of common stock
outstanding as of March 21, 2019. The business address for each of our directors and executive officers is our
corporate headquarters at 77 Rio Robles, San Jose, California 95134.

Directors and Named Executive Officers

Common Stock Beneficially Owned(1)
Number of Shares

%

François Badoual
Charles Boynton(2)
Helle Kristoffersen

Antoine Larenaudie

Catherine Lesjak

Kenneth Mahaffey
Thomas McDaniel(3)
William Mulligan(4)
Ladislas Paszkiewicz

Julien Pouget

Douglas Richards
Manavendra Sial(5)
Thomas Werner(6)
Pat Wood III

—

32,441

—

—

110,905

100,044

220,663

85,505

—

—

121,906

25,000

635,931

153,281

—

*

—

—

*

*

*

*

—

—

*

—

*

*

All Directors and Executive Officers as a Group (14 persons)

1,485,676

1.04%

Other Persons

Total S.A.
Total Solar International SAS(7)
2 place Jean Millier
La Défense 6
92400 Courbevoie
France

86,979,137

57.69%

*

(1)

Less than 1%.

Beneficial ownership is determined in accordance with the rules of the SEC and generally includes voting or investment power with respect
to the securities. In computing the number of shares beneficially owned by a person and the percentage ownership of that person, shares
underlying restricted stock units and options held by that person that will vest or be exercisable within 60 days of March 21, 2019 are
deemed to be outstanding. Such shares, however, are not deemed to be outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership
of any other person.

(2) Mr. Boynton served as our Chief Financial Officer until May 9, 2018, and remained an Executive Vice President of the Company through

July 1, 2018.

(3)

(4)

(5)

Includes 220,547 shares of common stock held indirectly in the McDaniel Trust dtd 7/26/2000, of which Mr. McDaniel and his spouse are
co-trustees.

Includes 2,000 shares of common stock held by Dr. Mulligan’s wife.

Includes 25,000 restricted stock units vesting within 60 days of March 21, 2019. Mr. Sial joined the Company as an Executive Vice President
on May 2, 2018, and became Chief Financial Officer of the Company on May 9, 2018.

63

(6)

(7)

Includes 32,500 restricted stock units vesting within 60 days of March 21, 2019 and 1,218 shares of common stock held by The Werner
Family Trust (‘‘WF Trust’’), of which Mr. Werner and his wife are co-trustees and the beneficiaries are the surviving spouse between Thomas
Werner and Suzanne Werner, to be followed by Jessica Werner and Katheryn Werner. Thomas and Suzanne Werner have been delegated joint
control and voting power over the WF Trust.

Includes 5,126,775 shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of the convertible debentures issued by us to Total Energies Nouvelles
Activités USA, SAS on June 11, 2014 and 3,275,680 shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of the convertible debentures issued
by us to Total Energies Nouvelles Activités USA, SAS on December 15, 2015.

Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance

Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires certain of our executive officers and our directors, and persons who
own more than 10% of a registered class of our equity securities, to file an initial report of ownership on Form 3 and
reports of changes in ownership on Forms 4 or 5 with the SEC and The Nasdaq Global Select Market. Such executive
officers, directors, and greater than 10% stockholders are also required by SEC regulations to furnish us with copies
of all Section 16 forms that they file. We periodically remind our directors and executive officers of their reporting
obligations and assist in making the required disclosures once we have been notified that a reportable event has
occurred. We are required to report in this proxy statement any failure by any of the above-mentioned persons to
make timely Section 16 reports.

Based solely on our review of the copies of such forms received by us, and written representations from our
directors and executive officers, we are unaware of any instances of noncompliance, or late compliance, with Section
16(a) filing requirements by our directors, executive officers, or greater than 10% stockholders during fiscal 2018,
except as follows: (i) the Form 4 filing for Thomas McDaniel’s acquisition of 8,611 restricted stock units on May 11,
2018 and immediate conversion of such restricted stock units to shares of common stock was made on May 23, 2018,
with the delay due to technical issues with the filing, and (ii) the Form 4 filing for Vidul Prakash’s sale of shares of
common stock on November 27, 2018 was made on January 8, 2019, due to delayed reporting of the transaction.

64

COMPANY STOCK PRICE PERFORMANCE

The following graph compares the performance of an investment in our common stock from December 27,
2013 through December 28, 2018, with the Nasdaq Composite index and with the Guggenheim Solar ETF. The
graph assumes $100 was invested on December 27, 2013 in our common stock at the closing price of $28.91 per
share, at the closing price for the Nasdaq Composite and at the closing price for the Guggenheim Solar ETF.
In addition, the graph assumes that any dividends were reinvested on the date of payment without payment of
any commissions. The performance shown in the graph represents past performance and should not be
considered an indication of future performance. The following graph is not, and shall not be deemed to be, filed
as part of our Annual Report on Form 10-K. Such graph should not be deemed filed or incorporated by reference
into any of our filings under the Securities Act of 1933, or the Exchange Act, except to the extent specifically
incorporated by reference therein by us.

 $200

 $175

 $150

 $125

 $100

 $75

 $50

 $25

 $-

SunPower Corpora(cid:2)on

NASDAQ Composite

Guggenheim Solar ETF

December 27,
2013

December 26,
2014

December 31,
2015

December 30,
2016

December 29,
2017

December 28,
2018

ASSUMES $100 INVESTED ON DECEMBER 27,2013
(ASSUMES DIVIDEND REINVESTED)
UNTIL FISCAL YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 30, 2018

December 26, 2014 December 31, 2015 December 30, 2016 December 29, 2017 December 28, 2018

SunPower Corporation

Nasdaq Composite

Guggenheim Solar ETF

$ 91.04

$115.64

$100.96

$103.80

$120.47

$ 91.04

$ 22.86

$129.51

$ 51.67

$ 29.16

$166.08

$ 78.37

$ 17.50

$158.41

$ 57.91

65

EQUITY COMPENSATION PLAN INFORMATION

The following table provides certain information as of December 30, 2018 with respect to our equity compensation

plans under which our equity securities are authorized for issuance (in thousands, except dollar figures).

Plan Category

Equity compensation plans approved by security holders

Total(1)

Number of
securities
to be issued
upon
exercise of
outstanding
options,
warrants
and rights

—

—

Weighted
average
exercise
price of
outstanding
options,
warrants
and rights

—

—

Number of securities
remaining available
for future issuance
under equity
compensation plans
(excluding securities
reflected in the first
column)

11,183

11,183

(1) As of December 30, 2018, no options remained outstanding under our equity incentive plans, including the plan we assumed in connection
with the acquisition of PowerLight Corporation, now known as SunPower Corporation, Systems, in January 2007. Under the terms of our
equity incentive plans, we may issue incentive or non-statutory stock options, restricted stock awards, restricted stock units, or stock
purchase rights to directors, employees, and consultants to purchase common stock. The SunPower Corporation 2015 Omnibus Incentive
Plan includes an automatic share reserve increase feature effective for fiscal 2016 through fiscal 2025. This share reserve increase feature
will cause an annual and automatic increase in the number of shares of our common stock reserved for issuance under the Stock Incentive
Plan in an amount each year equal to the least of: 3% of the outstanding shares of our common stock measured on the last day of the
immediately preceding fiscal year; 6,000,000 shares; and such other number of shares as determined by our Board. On January 1, 2019, the
share reserve increase feature caused an automatic increase of 4,235,385 (3%) shares for fiscal 2019.

66

PROPOSAL THREE

RATIFICATION OF THE APPOINTMENT OF
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM FOR FISCAL YEAR 2019

The Board, upon recommendation of the Audit Committee, has reappointed the firm of Ernst & Young LLP as
our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 29, 2019, subject to
ratification by our stockholders.

Ernst & Young LLP has served as our auditor since May 3, 2012. A representative of Ernst & Young LLP is
expected to be present at the Annual Meeting and will have an opportunity to make a statement if he or she desires
to do so, and is expected to be available to respond to appropriate questions.

Stockholder ratification of the selection of Ernst & Young LLP as our independent registered public accounting
firm is not required by our By-Laws or other applicable legal requirements. However, the Board is submitting the
selection of Ernst & Young LLP to the stockholders for ratification as a matter of good corporate governance.

If the stockholders fail to ratify the selection of our independent registered accounting firm, the Audit Committee
and the Board will reconsider whether or not to retain that firm. Even if the selection is ratified, the Board, at its
discretion, may direct the appointment of a different independent registered public accounting firm at any time during
the year if it determines that such a change would be in our and our stockholders’ best interests.

Ernst & Young LLP

Ernst & Young LLP fees incurred by us for fiscal 2017 and 2018 were as follows:

Services

Audit Fees

Audit-Related Fees

Tax Fees

All Other Fees

Total

2017
($)

4,702,292

341,734

1,588,948

2,790

6,635,764

2018
($)

5,859,755

137,420

1,440,168

11,200

7,448,544

•

•

•

•

Audit Fees: Audit fees for fiscal 2017 and 2018 were for professional services rendered in connection with
audits of our consolidated financial statements, statutory audits of our subsidiary companies, quarterly
reviews, and assistance with documents that we filed with the SEC (including our Forms 10-Q and 8-K)
for periods covering fiscal 2017 and 2018.

Audit-Related Fees: Audit-related fees for 2017 and 2018 were for professional services rendered in
connection with consultations with management on various accounting matters, including the Company’s
previously announced business re-segmentation.

Tax Fees: Tax fees for 2017 and 2018 were for tax compliance and consulting services.

All Other Fees: Other fees in 2017 and 2018 were for access to technical accounting services.

Audit Committee Pre-Approval

As required by Section 10A(i)(1) of the Exchange Act, our Audit Committee has adopted a pre-approval policy
requiring that the Audit Committee pre-approve all audit and permissible non-audit services to be performed by our
independent registered public accounting firm. Any proposed service that has received pre-approval but which will
exceed pre-approved cost limits will require additional pre-approval by the Audit Committee. In addition, pursuant
to Section 10A(i)(3) of the Exchange Act, the Audit Committee has established procedures by which the Audit
Committee may from time to time delegate pre-approval authority to the Chairman of the Audit Committee. If the
Chairman exercises this authority, he must report any pre-approval decisions to the full Audit Committee at its next
meeting. The independent registered public accounting firm and our management are required to periodically report
to the Audit Committee regarding the extent of services provided by the independent registered public accounting
firm in accordance with the committee’s pre-approval, and the fees for the services performed to date.

67

During fiscal 2017 and 2018, all services provided to us by Ernst & Young LLP were pre-approved by the Audit
Committee in accordance with the pre-approval policy described above. The scope and services were reviewed and
approved by the Audit Committee before the services were rendered. Ernst & Young LLP and our Audit Committee
have each concluded that Ernst & Young LLP’s objectivity and ability to exercise impartial judgment on all issues
encompassed with the audit engagement has not been impaired because (i) the services did not include prohibited
non-audit related services and (ii) the fees we paid were insignificant both to Ernst & Young LLP and to SunPower.

Vote Required

The ratification of the appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm
for fiscal year 2019 requires the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of our stock having voting power and
in attendance or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting. We do not expect ‘‘broker non-votes’’ on this proposal
since this proposal is considered to be a routine proposal and brokers have discretionary authority to vote on this
proposal. Abstentions will have the effect of votes against this proposal.

68

APPENDIX A

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Adjustments Based on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)

Our non-GAAP results include adjustments to recognize revenue and profit under IFRS that are consistent with
the adjustments made in connection with our reporting process as part of our status as a consolidated subsidiary of
Total S.A., a foreign public registrant which reports under IFRS. Differences between GAAP and IFRS reflected in
our non-GAAP results are further described below. In these situations, we believe that IFRS enables us to better
evaluate our revenue and profit generation performance, and assists in aligning the perspectives of our management
and noncontrolling shareholders with those of Total S.A., our controlling shareholder.

•

•

•

•

8point3. We include adjustments related to the sales of projects contributed to 8point3 Energy Partners LP
(8point3), a joint YieldCo vehicle we formed with First Solar, Inc. to own, operate, and acquire solar energy
generation assets, based on the difference between the fair market value of the consideration received and
the net carrying value of the projects contributed, of which a portion is deferred in proportion to our
retained equity stake in 8point3 and its subsidiaries. On June 19, 2018, we sold our equity interest in the
8point3 Group.

Legacy utility and power plant projects. We include adjustments related to the revenue recognition of
certain utility and power plant projects based on percentage-of-completion accounting and, when relevant,
the allocation of revenue and margin to our project development efforts at the time of initial project sale.

Sale-leaseback transactions. We include adjustments related to the revenue recognition on certain
sale-leaseback transactions based on the net proceeds received from the buyer-lessor. Under GAAP, these
transactions are accounted for under the financing method in accordance with real estate accounting
guidance.

Unrealized loss in equity investments. In connection with the divestment of our microinverters business in
the third quarter of fiscal 2018, we received a portion of the consideration in the form of common stock.
We recognized adjustments related to the fair value of equity investments with readily determinable fair
value based on the changes in the stock price of these equity investments at every reporting period. Under
GAAP, unrealized gains and losses due to changes in stock prices for these securities are recorded in
earnings while under International Financial Reporting Standards (‘‘IFRS’’), an election can be made to
recognize such gains and losses in other comprehensive income.

Other Non-GAAP Adjustments

•

Impairment and sale of residential lease assets. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, we made the decision
to sell or refinance our interest in the residential lease portfolio and as a result of this triggering event,
determined it was necessary to evaluate the potential for impairment in our ability to recover the carrying
amount of the residential lease portfolio. In accordance with such evaluation, we recognized a non-cash
impairment charge on our solar power systems leased and to be leased and an allowance for losses related
to financing receivables. In connection with the impairment loss, the carrying values of the Company’s
solar power systems leased and to be leased were reduced which resulted in lower depreciation charges. In
the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018, we entered into a joint venture with HA SunStrong Capital LLC
(‘‘HA SunStrong Parent’’), an affiliate of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc., to
acquire, own, manage, operate, finance, and maintain a portfolio of residential rooftop or ground-mounted
solar photovoltaic electric generating systems. Pursuant to the terms of the Purchase and Sale Agreement
(the ‘‘PSA’’), we sold to HA SunStrong Parent, in exchange for consideration of $10.0 million, membership
units representing a 49.0% membership interest in SunStrong Capital Holdings, LLC (‘‘SunStrong’’),
formerly our wholly owned subsidiary. Following the closing of the PSA, we deconsolidated certain entities
that have historically held the assets and liabilities comprising our residential lease business, as part of our
previously announced decision to sell a portion of our interest in the portfolio of residential lease assets,
and retained membership units representing a 51% membership interest in SunStrong. The loss on
divestment and the remaining unsold residential lease asset impairment with its corresponding depreciation
savings are excluded from the Company’s segment results as they are non-cash in nature and not reflective
of ongoing operating results.

A-1

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

Impairment of property, plant, and equipment. In the second quarter of fiscal 2018, we announced our
proposed plan to change the corporate structure into the Upstream business unit and Downstream business
unit, and long-term strategy to replace IBC technology to NGT. Accordingly, the Company expects to
upgrade the equipment associated with our manufacturing operations for the production of NGT over the
next several years. In connection with these events, the Company determined indicators of impairment
existed and therefore performed an evaluation of the recoverability of the asset group. In accordance with
such evaluation, we recognized a non-cash impairment charge on our property, plant, and equipment. Such
asset impairment is excluded from the Company’s segment results as it is non-cash in nature and not
reflective of ongoing segment results.

Cost of above-market polysilicon. We have entered into multiple long-term, fixed-price supply agreements
to purchase polysilicon for periods of up to 10 years. The prices in select legacy supply agreements, which
incorporate a cash portion and a non-cash portion attributable to the amortization of prepayments made
under the agreements, significantly exceed current market prices. Additionally, in order to reduce inventory
and improve working capital, we have periodically elected to sell polysilicon inventory in the marketplace
at prices below the Company’s purchase price, thereby incurring a loss. We believe that it is appropriate
to exclude the impact of its above-market cost of polysilicon, including the effect of above-market
polysilicon on product costs, losses incurred on sales of polysilicon to third parties, and inventory reserves
and project asset impairments from the Company’s non-GAAP financial measures as they are not reflective
of ongoing operating results and do not contribute to a meaningful evaluation of a Company’s past
operating performance.

Stock-based compensation. Stock-based compensation relates primarily to our equity incentive awards, and
is a non-cash expense that is dependent on market forces that are difficult to predict. We believe that this
adjustment for stock-based compensation provides a basis to measure our core performance, including
compared with the performance of other companies, without the period-to-period variability created by
stock-based compensation.

Amortization of intangible assets. We incur amortization of intangible assets as a result of acquisitions,
which includes patents, purchased technology, project pipeline assets, and in-process research and
development. We believe that it is appropriate to exclude these amortization charges as they arise from prior
acquisitions, are not reflective of ongoing operating results, and do not contribute to a meaningful
evaluation of our past operating performance.

Depreciation of idle equipment. In the fourth quarter of 2017, we changed the deployment plan for our next
generation of solar cell technology, which made certain then temporarily idle equipment obsolete, and therefore
retired that affected equipment. Such asset depreciation is excluded from our non-GAAP financial measures as
it is non-cash in nature and not reflective of ongoing operating results. Excluding this data provides investors
with a basis to compare our performance against the performance of other companies without such charges.

Gain on business divestiture. In the third quarter of fiscal 2018, we entered into a transaction pursuant to
which we sold certain assets and intellectual property related to the production of microinverters for
purchase consideration comprised of both cash and stock. In connection with this sale, we recognized a gain
relating to this business divestiture. We believe that it is appropriate to exclude this gain from our
non-GAAP financial measures as it is non-cash in nature and not reflective of ongoing operating results.

Acquisition-related and other costs. In connection with the acquisition of certain assets of SolarWorld
Americas, Inc. (‘‘SolarWorld Americas’’), which closed on October 1, 2018, we incurred legal and
accounting fees. We believe that it is appropriate to exclude these costs from our non-GAAP financial
measures as they would not have otherwise been incurred as part of our business operations and are
therefore not reflective of ongoing operating results.

Business reorganization costs. In connection with the reorganization of our business into an upstream and
downstream business unit structure, we incurred and expect to continue incurring expenses in the upcoming
quarters associated with reclassifying prior period segment information, reorganization of corporate functions
and responsibilities to the business units, updating accounting policies and processes and implementing systems
to fulfill the requirements of the master supply agreement between the segments. We believe that it is appropriate
to exclude these from our non-GAAP financial measures as they would not have otherwise been incurred as part
of our business operations and are therefore not reflective of ongoing operating results.

A-2

•

•

•

•

•

Non-cash interest expense. We incur non-cash interest expense related to the amortization of items such as
original issuance discounts on our debt. We exclude non-cash interest expense because the expense does
not reflect our financial results in the period incurred.

Restructuring expense. We incur restructuring expenses related to reorganization plans aimed towards
realigning resources consistent with our global strategy and improving our overall operating efficiency and
cost structure. We excluded restructuring charges from non-GAAP financial measures because they are not
considered core operating activities and such costs have historically occurred infrequently.

IPO-related costs. Costs incurred related to the initial public offering of 8point3 included legal, accounting,
advisory, valuation, and other expenses, as well as modifications to or terminations of certain existing
financing structures in preparation for sale to 8point3. As these costs are non-recurring in nature, excluding
this data provides us with a basis to evaluate the Company’s performance, including compared with the
performance of other companies, without similar impacts.

Tax effect. This amount is used to present each of the adjustments described above on an after-tax basis in
connection with the presentation of non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP net income per diluted share.
The Company’s non-GAAP tax amount is based on estimated cash tax expense and reserves. We forecast
our annual cash tax liability and allocate the tax to each quarter in a manner generally consistent with its
GAAP methodology. This approach is designed to enhance our ability to understand the impact of the
Company’s tax expense on its current operations, provide improved modeling accuracy, and substantially
reduce fluctuations caused by GAAP to non-GAAP adjustments, which may not reflect actual cash tax
expense.

Adjusted EBITDA adjustments. When calculating Adjusted EBITDA, in addition to adjustments described
above, we exclude the impact during the period of the following items:

•

•

•

Cash interest expense, net of interest income

Provision for (benefit from) income taxes

Depreciation

We use this non-GAAP financial measure to enable us to evaluate the Company’s performance, including
compared with the performance of other companies. For more information about these non-GAAP financial
measures, see the tables captioned ‘‘Reconciliations of GAAP Measures to Non-GAAP Measures’’ set forth in our
Form 8-K filed on February 13, 2019.

A-3

Changing the Way Our World is Powered

Finding the right solar doesn’t have to be complicated. For more 

than 30 years, SunPower has helped homeowners and businesses 

across the globe reduce their monthly electricity bills with the 

most efficient, powerful and reliable panels available, all backed 

by our industry-leading 25-year warranty. It’s solar made simple.

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, SunPower has a team of around 

6,600 dedicated, customer-focused employees in Africa, Asia,  

Australia, Europe, North and South America. For more information 

about how SunPower is changing the way our world is powered, 

visit www.sunpower.com.

Executive Officers

Thomas H. Werner
President, Chief Executive Officer  
and Chairman of the Board

Manavendra Sial
Executive Vice President  
and Chief Financial Officer

Kenneth Mahaffey
Executive Vice President  
and General Counsel

Douglas J. Richards
Executive Vice President,  
Administration

Jeffrey Waters
Chief Executive Officer,  
SunPower Technologies

Vichheka Heang
Corporate Controller  
and Principal Accounting Officer

Board of Directors

Thomas H. Werner
Chairman of the Board

François Badoual
Director

Antoine Larenaudie
Director

Helle Kristoffersen
Director

Catherine Lesjak
Director

Thomas R. McDaniel
Director

Ladislas Paszkiewicz
Director

Julien Pouget
Director

Patrick Wood III
Director

Corporate Headquarters

SunPower Corporation
77 Rio Robles 
San Jose, California 95134
408.240.5500

sunpower.com

©2019 SunPower Corporation. All Rights Reserved. SUNPOWER, the SUNPOWER logo, and all other 
trademarks cited herein are the property of SunPower Corporation in the U.S. and other countries as well.

Annual Report

2018